Truths Revealed
by Midie
Summary: Part two of my trilogy. After We've All Made Promises. Drake deals with the things that are happening his senior year while Josh tries to help him.
1. Chapter 1: Shut Up, James Blunt

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

Author's Note: New story. This is part two of my trilogy. This one is going to go into something a bit more mature in chapter seven, and I'll remind you again then. That's just a forewarning right now. It's not going to go over the "T" rating, so don't worry about that. Anyway, in this story, Drake's dealing with Christine dating someone else, and someone else is going to come back. I don't want to give away too much though. Oh, and rose colors will be an important part of this. But don't worry, just listen to everything Christine says about them, and you should understand. One more thing, more song lyrics...the James Blunt song is James Blunt's. He wrote it, not me. Gotta disclaim it. We now return you to your regularly scheduled fanfiction, and as always, please read and review.

* * *

_My life is brilliant_

_My life is brilliant  
My love is pure  
I saw an angel  
Of that I'm sure  
She smiled at me on the subway  
She was with another man  
But I won't lose no sleep on that  
'Cause I've got a plan_

_You're beautiful  
You're beautiful  
You're beautiful, it's true  
I saw your face  
In a crowded place  
And I don't know what to do  
'Cause I'll never be with you_

_Yes, she caught my eye  
As I walked on by  
She could see from my face that I was  
Flying high  
And I don't think that I'll see her again  
But we shared a moment that will last 'til the end..._

The song stopped abruptly as Drake slammed his hand on the power button of the stereo.

"Shut up, James Blunt," he said. He sat down on the sofa. That song reminded him a lot about how he cared about Christine, but "she was with another man." This was irritating. The only plus from all of this was the fact that it gave him new material for writing music.

Josh walked into the room.

"What's up?" he asked

"Not too much," Drake replied.

Josh glanced at the stereo and turned it on. That song was still playing. Fortunately, it was the last chorus. Unfortunately, it was the last chorus.

_You're beautiful  
You're beautiful  
You're beautiful, it's true  
There must be an angel  
With a smile on her face  
When she thought that I should be with you_

_But it's time to face the truth  
I will never be with you_

"Thanks, Josh," Drake said. "That just sent my spirits sky high."

"I don't see why you didn't just tell her," Josh replied.

"Because, she's with David now. I can't just come between her and her new boyfriend, especially one who really seems to care about her."

"But you care about her," Josh responded. Christine had been Drake's best friend ever since preschool. She'd moved to San Francisco when they were both eleven. She and her mother had moved back about five months ago because her parents got a divorce. The split was a bit messy, considering her father had an affair, but she had gone to see him and things were good between them. Drake had wished things had gone as smoothly when he confronted Ford in New York a few months ago.

"Which is why I can't tell her," Drake replied. "What if it ruined her relationship with David? She'd be heartbroken. I can't come between her and someone she cares about. Besides, that would also ruin the friendship I have with her, and I made a promise to her when we were little, and I intend to keep that promise."

Josh shook his head. Drake had been talking about promises a lot lately.

"Look, you're not going after a girl you want. That frightens me," Josh said. "It's not like you at all."

"That was the old Drake."

"Well 'the old Drake' was around when he decided to 'borrow' my G-O when he picked up Christine."

"Okay, so the old Drake does still exist. I just don't want to do that to girls anymore. It's because of Ford that I did that, and I don't want to be like him. Not after everything he's done."

"Okay," Josh sighed. It was difficult to talk to Drake lately. He truly was the same as before, except he wasn't dating anyone. "If you won't tell Christine, why don't you at least start dating again? I mean, you might as well try. Maybe you'll find someone you like."

"I guess you're right," Drake responded. Josh was shocked that Drake had given in easily. "If she's with someone else, there's no reason for me to be alone. I just wish I had said something before I left. What difference does it make now?"

"I really don't know," Josh replied. He wished there was something he could do.

The summer was almost ending, and senior year would begin in a week. This was supposed to be the best year of their lives, but Drake was acting weird before it even began. The problem also remained that college was just around the corner, and Drake hadn't mentioned it at all. He still hadn't gone to see Alan Crimm. Mainly because the fact that he had a, now, twelve-year-old playing the drums was something undesired. That might not sit well with Crimm. Or anyone else for that matter. Then, where Drake stood on the college front, Josh didn't know. He hoped he would find something to do with himself.

* * *

Josh was cleaning up at the Premiere. His shift was almost over, and he had a date with Mindy that night. He glanced up from wiping up some spilled Mountain Fizz to see Drake talking to a girl. 

_Finally,_ Josh thought. _He needs to get out there and date again. He's really started to worry me._

Drake finished talking to the girl and gave her a smile before walking over to his brother at the snack counter.

"Well?" Josh asked.

"Well, what?" came Drake's reply.

"Date? Who is she? She's cute."

"Yeah, Melissa, she goes to Lincoln."

"She's not a cheerleader is she?" Josh asked.

"No, why?" Drake questioned, a bit puzzled.

"After what their football team did to me, I need to be careful of anyone who associates with them," Josh replied.

"Okay," said Drake. "Anyway, yeah, I have a date with her Saturday night."

"Good to see you out there playing the field again," Josh said.

"I don't want to play the field," Drake responded, "but I don't have much of a choice now, do I?"

"Don't look at this as a bad thing," Josh said. "Look at it as an opportunity to meet some new people, and you can play the field without dating the way you did before Christine came back. I mean, a lot of other people do it."

"Says the man who's only ever had one girlfriend in his whole life."

"Ouch. That hurt so much that my girlfriend's been with me for over a year."

"Whatever."

"Well, good luck with it. I've got to go. Mindy's expecting me to pick her up in about an hour and a half, and I still have to change."

"Bye," Drake said as Josh left the Premiere. Drake hung around for a few minutes. He was thirsty and decided to get a soda. When he turned around after he paid Gavin for one (he kicked himself for not getting it when Josh was still there, he could have gotten it free that way), he saw Christine walk in with David. David lived in San Francisco, but he came to San Diego to see Christine the week before school began.

Drake had spent a good portion of his summer with Christine, trying to get her to more or less fall for him, but he could only be subtle about it. He'd learned much about David. He was a member of the honor society, he played basketball, he was going to help organize prom...it all made Drake sick to his stomach. David was all the things Drake would never be, and Drake knew it. David was the one Christine deserved. He was even quickly accepted by the circle of friends Christine had made when Drake introduced her to Michelle the previous school year. How could Drake have been foolish enough to think he could attempt to make her fall for him? He cared about her, but she knew that, so him showing her didn't do much good, except make her happier about who her best friend was. However, he would never be with her. David was what Drake knew she deserved in the first place, when he had said she deserved better than him.

Since David came to San Diego a few times over the summer, Drake spent a bit of time with him too. He never hung around with Christine and David long though because it bothered him too much to hang around with Christine and her boyfriend when Drake himself cared about her as more than a friend. Hadn't she seen that he wasn't dating anymore? Had that given her any clue? Maybe love did make people blind, blind to see the other people in her life at least. Still, Drake could only blame himself, and as he wanted to keep his promise to her, he could only be subtle about trying to get her to fall for him. In the end, he gave up on it. She just wasn't getting it.

Drake didn't want Christine and David to see him, so he quickly turned around waiting for Gavin to hand him his soda. Gavin handed it to him and looked up at who was behind him in line.

"Oh, Drake," said Gavin. "Look, it's Christine and her boyfriend."

Drake gave Gavin a look that said he would die if he ever did that again and turned around.

"Hi, Drake," said Christine, giving him a smile.

"Hi," Drake replied. David gave him a grin. Drake didn't want David to be nice to him. He wanted to turn back time to the night before he left for New York and tell Christine what he felt, but he hadn't come to his realizations yet and so, didn't have the courage to say anything to her. Then this happens. She's taken away by a guy who lives in San Francisco, and they were getting serious. College time was coming up quickly, and Drake wouldn't be surprised if Christine packed up her bags and said she was going to San Francisco to be with David.

Drake shook his head. He was being ridiculous. Things might not even go that far between the two. What was he hoping for though? For David to dump her and him be the one to catch her and show her real love like some cheesy clichéd romance movie? It wasn't going to end that way either. So, how would it end? Would it end at all? Even though the odds of a high school couple being separated by distance staying together were fairly slim, they got along very well. They really seemed to like each other. Drake only had himself to blame for not being the one she was with tonight. Besides, he had Melissa for now. Maybe things would end up working out well in a relationship with her. Drake could only hope.

"I don't have long, I told Josh I'd help him with something tonight, so I'll say goodbye." Drake walked away from Christine and David. David glanced down at Christine to see her face etched with worry.

"What's the matter?" asked David.

"Josh has a date with Mindy tonight," she replied softly.


	2. Chapter 2: The Formula for the Perfect Y

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

A/N: Sorry this didn't get up yesterday, but I couldn't edit it so that it would look right when you saw it. It's up now anyway. Sorry for the delay.

_Chapter 2: The Formula for the Perfect Year_

* * *

Drake paused at the entrance of Belleview. Three long years had passed, and this was supposed to be what was all worth it. He was finally a senior. This was supposed to be the best year ever, and he wasn't going to let Christine and David's relationship ruin it. Christine was his best friend no matter what. Nothing would change that. He was going to date again and get her off of his mind. He'd have a date to every dance. He wouldn't be alone on Saturday night. After all, it was the only way the both of them could be happy, right? 

Drake entered the doors of the building and glanced around. Yep. His territory. He was popular. He wouldn't have any trouble.

Mitch nearly collided with Drake as he ran at him down the hall.

"Is it true?" Mitch asked.

"What?" Drake questioned.

"You and the girl from Lincoln. Are you really dating a Lincoln girl?"

"Oh, kind of. I mean, we haven't been on a date yet, but we will this weekend."

"Finally. You were really starting to scare me, man."

"Hey, I gotta catch up with myself. I didn't get to do much dating hanging around that Baylor chick." Drake felt a sick feeling in his stomach when he said the words "that Baylor chick." Best friends didn't do that to each other. Mitch expected him to be a ladies man, though, and Drake wanted to get over Christine. But...there had to be a better way than that. Drake was supposed to be popular. He wasn't supposed to hang around with the smarter kids that Christine did. Although, she was annoyed by Eric and Craig who she swore acted like a married couple.

"Right," Mitch replied. "Best year ever, right?"

"You know it," Drake responded. The two headed to the office to pick up their semester schedules. Drake couldn't even remember what he chose for electives. He did recall that he had to take an English course that was split between two teachers: Mr. Walden and Mrs. Haifer. He couldn't have Mrs. Haifer. It would ruin the formula for the perfect year.

"Here you go Mr. Parker," said the secretary, handing Drake his schedule as Mitch was glancing over his.

"Aw man," said Mitch. "I got Coach Dawson for gym. The guy commands class like boot camp."

"You still don't have it as bad as I do," Drake replied. "I have Mrs. Haifer again."

"The one that hates you? Man, that's rough."

"You don't need to tell me," Drake replied. He sighed and looked up at the clock. It was nearly time for classes to start. "We'd better go. If I get detention on the first day, I'm in trouble at home."

"See you later Drake," said Mitch.

Drake dragged his feet to class. He just had to have Mrs. Haifer for English. To top it all off, it was his first class of the day. That meant he had to spend an extra fifteen minutes with her for homeroom. He finally got to the classroom and walked inside. Christine was in his class along with Josh and, ugh, Mindy. Class wouldn't be too unbearable. He didn't really care whether or not he could focus with Christine there. It's not like he ever focused anyway. He debated for a moment and took the seat behind Christine.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi," she replied softly.

Drake was slightly puzzled. Even though she was shy, she never was around him. Besides that, she was starting to grow out of it.

"Is something wrong?" Drake questioned.

"No," she responded.

"You sure?" Drake asked.

Mrs. Haifer walked into the room before Christine could answer.

"Alright class, welcome to your senior English class. This year, you will..." She stopped short. "Oh, it's Drake Parker again."

Drake rolled his eyes. Yeah, best year ever.

* * *

English finally ended, and Drake quickly caught Christine by the arm. 

"Really," he said. "What's wrong? You're too quiet."

"Funny how you're caring about 'that Baylor chick' now," Christine shot at him. Great. She'd heard him that morning.

"Look, I do...er...you know that. That was just, um..."

"That was just you trying to play the tough guy in front of your friends. What's the matter with you? You shouldn't have to be fake to get people to like you. You know what, I don't care how you act in front of Mitch, but leave me out of the conversation, okay?" She walked past him, clearly upset.

Drake stared after her. First Mrs. Haifer, then he screws things up with Christine. The formula for the perfect year was falling apart right in front of him. He just had to be the popular, tough guy.

"What's the matter, Drake?" asked Mrs. Haifer. "What'd you do?"

"Why does it have to be my fault?" Drake responded, aggravated.

"Let's be serious. It's you. For some reason, she's good friends with you, and for some reason she's angry with you. I'm not one to become involved with my students' problems, but I think you're being ridiculous if you throw away a friendship over popularity. Your true friends care about who you really are, not what you do or say."

"Thanks, but I'm going to handle this my own way," Drake replied.

"Fine. Just thought I'd offer my two cents. Besides, I still hate you."

"I know..."

* * *

Drake had tried to talk to Christine at lunch but to no avail. She wasn't happy with him. He sat in his bedroom thinking about what had happened that day. Things were far too complicated now. And what was with Mrs. Haifer offering up advice? She hated him. Drake decided had decided two years ago that he couldn't figure her out and still didn't plan on it. 

"So," said Josh, walking into the guys' bedroom. "I hear you're a self-centered jerk."

"Did Christine say that?" Drake asked, paranoid.

"No, Mindy did. Dude, there's no way Christine would say that about you, even after what you did this morning."

"After I...oh, come on, Josh," Drake began.

"No, you come on," Josh replied. "You know, I was glad to see you acting normal again, but if you put Christine below your other friends, she's not going to be your friend for long."

"She's got David now."

"Is that what this is about? I thought you weren't saying anything to her because you didn't want to wreck your friendship because you promised her you'd be together forever when you were little, and you've been pretty uptight about keeping that promise, but you might as well tell her how you feel because you're already wrecking your friendship with this stupid need to be the tough guy. What about Melissa from Lincoln? Aren't you going to go out with her? Think before you do anything. Otherwise, you're going to end up messing up a lot. Your friendship with Christine should mean more than this. You don't get what you want, so you revert back to the way you were before you went to New York?"

"Would you just leave me alone?" Drake snapped. "I'll deal with things my own way, got it?"

"You said you didn't want to break your promises Drake. Not like him."

"I know," Drake replied more calmly this time. "Can we just drop it?" Drake begged.

"Okay," Josh replied. He only hoped that his brother wouldn't end up having to choose between Christine and his other friends. If he did, he'd probably end up choosing his other friends with the way things were going right now. Josh didn't want Drake to make any mistakes he'd regret.

Drake left the room and headed downstairs. His mom was arranging a vase of yellow roses.

"Hey, Mom. Dad get you flowers?" Drake asked. Walter wasn't the type to normally buy his wife flowers, "just because,"so it surprised Drake a little.

"No," Audrey replied. "My friend Diane sent me these."

"Women send each other flowers?" Drake asked.

"Well, yellow roses symbolize friendship," Audrey replied.

"Really?" Drake asked with little fascination. Who said each color of a rose meant something? They were just flowers. Just the color showed certain affection? Drake carefully studied the roses in the vase. It was an interesting concept when he thought about it.

* * *

A/N: I hope you notice that Drake acts a certain way around Christine than other people, especially his friends. I tried to do that in the last story too. If you noticed, he was really nice to Christine, but he said the same stuff he normally does to Mindy. But I hope you see what I tried to do. I was debating on putting in Drake saying what he did, but Christine's response to what he does to try and make up for it will play a part in what happens later, so while it may not be the best way to get there, I just wanted you to understand the contrast about the way he acts toward Christine and to lead into something that will be important later, and he does feel bad about it, as he reflects right after he says it. 

As always, please review. I appreciate it a lot.


	3. Chapter 3: A New Promise

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

_Chapter Three: A New Promise_

* * *

Drake faced Christine, feeling confident and ready to tell her all his heart held. It was now or never. 

"Christine," he said, looking into her eyes. "I know we've been friends for years, but there's something you need to know. You're more than a friend to me. I really care about you. I've fallen for you. I love you."

Christine didn't respond. She just sat there staring at him as though he wasn't there.

"What do you take me for?" she finally asked. "You're too late. I have David now, and you've become too much like _him_ for me to even consider caring about you that way."

Her voice was cold. Drake felt his heart shatter. She stood up and began to walk away.

"No!" Drake called. "Christine! Christine, don't go! I love you!"

Drake suddenly felt his body being violently shaken. He opened his eyes to find himself lying in bed and Josh firmly holding his shoulders.

"Are you okay?" Josh asked, concerned. "You were calling out 'No!' in your sleep."

"I was?" Drake asked. "I'm fine. Just a bad dream."

"Are you sure?" Josh asked.

"Yeah," Drake responded. "I'm great." He jumped off of his bed. "I'm going to go grab some breakfast since I'm up. See you in a little while." Drake grabbed some clothes and headed to the bathroom before going downstairs to the kitchen.

Josh's gaze followed Drake out the door. He sighed. He hadn't wanted to tell Drake, but he'd also heard him call out Christine's name. He hoped that Melissa would take his mind off of her, or he'd get smart and tell Melissa he wasn't ready for a relationship right now. Josh shook his head. There were his hopes. Drake and Melissa hadn't even gone out yet. They could hate each other. Josh didn't know what to do because he had not only heard Drake call Christine's name, but he'd also heard his confession of love. Josh wasn't sure how to deal with that. He hoped Drake would come around soon. He also hoped Drake knew that Josh was there for him.

* * *

Drake stared into the bathroom mirror. For once, he hated what he saw. He saw the look Ford had given him when Drake first saw him again. It made him look a lot like Ford. He didn't want to be like him at all. And where had the words, "I love you" come from? He cared about her, yes. He'd fallen for her, yes. But love? Did he really? No, he couldn't. They didn't even have that kind of relationship. However, Josh had warned him yesterday that Drake vowed he would keep his promises to her and that he swore he didn't want to be Ford. How much was his popularity worth? 

Drake quickly dressed and headed downstairs. He walked by the vase of yellow roses his mom had put out the previous night. It wasn't such a bad idea.

* * *

Drake sat in the English classroom, anxiously waiting for Christine to arrive. He wanted her to show up before anyone else. He just hoped she got to school early enough. He glanced up and sighed as she walked into the room. 

"Hi," he said.

"Hello," she responded. She was holding two yellow roses.

"I guess you found what was in your locker."

"Yeah," she replied. "Drake, do you honestly expect that flowers are going to make me feel better about yesterday?"

"If I told you I was being a jackass will that make it any better?"

"That helps, a little, but you're still in hot water."

"I'm sorry, okay? I really shouldn't have said that. Would it help if I told you I didn't like saying it?"

"Only if it's true."

"Well, it is," Drake replied.

"If you didn't like saying it, why did you?"

"Because," he began, sitting down on the top of his desk, "it's hard trying to stay popular and everything. I try to look a certain way to people, and it's not always valued by everyone who sees it. I'm sorry. I'll leave you out of it next time."

"Okay," she replied. "You're forgiven, but Drake, if you have to act a certain way that you rather wouldn't to be friends with some people, are they really your friends?"

"You sound like Josh."

"He's right," Christine replied. "By the way, that new Jon Heder movie opens this weekend. Want to go?"

"Sure," Drake replied.

"Saturday?" she asked.

"I can't."

"Why not?" she questioned.

"I have a date that night," he responded. Christine looked a bit surprised. She also had a different look to her face, but Drake couldn't quite place it. Was it disappointment?

"Oh, well that's great," she replied. "Friday night or Sunday afternoon then?"

"Sunday afternoon is fine," Drake said. "So, your boyfriend's not going to get jealous because I gave you flowers, is he?"

"Well, hopefully he'll understand that yellow roses are friendship. I'm wondering how you knew that."

"I did."

"I've known you since preschool. You're not the type who would know."

"Okay, my mom told me yesterday."

"Uh huh. That sounds about right," she replied. "It's funny. Yellow roses speak friendship, but a single red one means 'I love you.'" She paused. There was a bit of longing in her eyes. Drake didn't notice this, though. "How'd you get them in my locker anyway?"

"Megan."

The rest of the class began to enter the room. Christine slid into her seat in front of Drake. He was glad he patched things up between them. He hopped off the top of his desk and into his chair. Josh walked into the room and glanced over at Drake. He hoped he'd done something to get Christine on his good side again. He stopped worrying when later during class, she turned around to hand Drake their paper assignment and gave him a smile.

* * *

Saturday came quickly, and Drake wasn't sure how he felt about that day. What if he couldn't keep his mind off of Christine? He paused in the lobby of the Premiere. He had to keep his mind off of her. It was for the best. He managed to do pretty well at school. If he was looking at another pretty girl, it should be easier. 

Melissa walked up behind him and touched his shoulder. He turned around. She was slightly shorter than he was and had hair that was almost black with brown eyes. She gave him a kiss on the cheek, and they went to sit down at a table.

"So," Melissa began, "you're a musician?"

"Yeah," Drake replied. "I'm in a band. We might get a record deal soon, but we'll see where that goes."

"Oh, that sounds great."

"Yeah. We're going to give it a shot."

"And you play guitar. Hmm. All the guys at Lincoln are into the football team. If you're not on a sports team, you're not cool."

"Well, you're cool at Belleview if you play sports, but there's other ways to get popular."

"I see. It's nice to meet guys who aren't so pumped over chasing a ball around in the grass and are actually sensitive enough to write music and things like that."

"Thanks," Drake replied. Actually, this was going pretty well. That was how most of the conversations started. "You're in a band?" Not that Drake wasn't proud of it, but sometimes after that, it was all they wanted to talk about. As much as he loved talking about his music, he did like talking about other things as well. It was nice to see it move a little toward how annoying the popularity contests at some schools were.

Melissa's phone suddenly rang.

"Hold on," she said. She picked it up and laughed at whoever called her. "I told you not to call me today," she giggled. "Okay. Mmm hmm. Bye." She hung up and shook her head. "That was my friend John. My best friend actually."

"Oh," Drake replied.

"Oh, don't worry. He's gay," she continued.

"Interesting because one of my best friends is a girl, and she's not." Drake wondered how Melissa would take this news.

"You're different from what I heard about you," Melissa said. "You're very nice and haven't tried to make any moves. Your best friend is a girl. I've always heard you liked them and went out with them and never gave them a second thought after you dumped them."

"Well," Drake said. He had to be honest. "I used to do that. I've been meaning to change that."

"Really? Why?"

"Things just came up and I don't want to act that way anymore."

"Oh."

"My best friend being a girl doesn't bother you, does it?"

"No. As long as you're not harboring any lovesick feelings for her," she giggled. Drake smiled weakly. His hope was to lose those feelings for Christine.

"It's just I do hang out with her often, so if this went anywhere, I wouldn't want you to be upset by it." He didn't love Christine. No matter what his crazy dreams thought.

"Doesn't bother me at all," she replied.

Drake smiled. Maybe this would work out after all.

* * *

Drake and Christine walked out of the movie they had just seen. Once again, Jon Heder did not disappoint them. 

"I swear, that guy's great," Drake said. "He even made the chick flick good for me."

"_Just Like Heaven_? Oh, yes. Good movie," Christine said. "That was great though."

"Yep." They headed toward a table and sat down.

"So, how'd it go with Melissa yesterday?" Christine asked.

"Okay," Drake replied.

"Are you going to see her again?"

"Yeah. She was pretty cool."

Christine paused for a moment. She looked down at her hands then back up at Drake.

"This might seem like an odd question considering we're both dating right now, but if I don't have a date and you don't have a date come prom time, would you go with me?"

"Ah, well, you've got David, wouldn't...?"

"Well, what if David and I broke up or he couldn't be there? I just want to make sure I have a date for prom, and I figure this way, you'd be secure too. Not that you wouldn't have a date, but you know."

"I guess so," Drake replied. "Okay. If I don't have a date to prom, and you don't have a date to prom, we'll go together. Promise."

* * *

A/N: Oh, darn Alison, you guessed what I was going to do. :P But anyway everyone, pay attention to what Christine said about the rose colors. They'll come up later. And please review. I have no idea what you think if you don't review. 


	4. Chapter 4: U Got It Bad

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

A/N: Homecoming...you figure out what Christine and Drake are thinking...oh, yeah. "U Got It Bad" is sung by Usher. Gotta add that to the disclaimer since I don't own that either (oh, and I "censored" the f-word, so I wouldn't have to switch from a "T" to an "M" rating, I just didn't want to deal with it if it happened to come up because I never know what's going to happen...besides, they'd censor it for a high school dance anyway).

_Chapter Four: U Got It Bad_

* * *

Homecoming was a short time away. Drake's relationship with Melissa was going quite well. He even seemed to forget about Christine. The only problem was, David was coming from San Francisco to go to their Homecoming. Drake wasn't exactly jealous, but it still bothered him a bit. He had Melissa to take to Homecoming anyway. Things were working out well. 

Since Drake got over his "Mr. Popularity" period at the beginning of the year, he'd cooled down a bit and picked up where he had been with Christine the previous school year, hopefully, without the romantic feelings.

* * *

Christine and Mindy were at the mall buying their Homecoming dresses. Mindy soon found Christine to be quite picky. They'd been to several different stores already, and Mindy never thought she'd think it, but she didn't want to go to a mall ever again. Mindy already had her dress. It was a soft, pale yellow, and she wanted to show Josh the material _before_ Homecoming so that he could pick out a tie to match, but if Christine didn't choose a dress soon, Homecoming would be over by the time Mindy showed it to him. Christine still hadn't found the right dress. Mindy didn't know who she was trying to impress. She already had her man. 

"Christine, can we please go get some lunch?" Mindy begged. "If you drag me into another store before we eat, I'll faint dead away."

Christine looked at Mindy and sighed.

"Okay," she said. "I'm sorry. I just want to find the right one."

"If it were prom, I could see that happening, but it's Homecoming. What are you doing?"

"I don't know. It just needs to be perfect."

"...Why can't you settle on semi-perfect for Homecoming?" Mindy sighed. "Fine. Let's go eat though. I'm starved."

The two girls made their way to the food court and sat down. Boy, was it good to sit. Mindy didn't know the last time she'd been across the mall that many times. She glanced up at Christine, who was slowly finishing her Mocha Cola and appeared to be deep in thought.

"Is something wrong?" Mindy asked.

"No," replied Christine. "I'm just trying to think."

Mindy sighed. She really couldn't understand Christine. If she already had a boyfriend, why was she trying hard to make an impression with a dress? Maybe it was something about David. Mindy decided to put up with it.

"Okay, let's go," Christine said. They got up and made their way to another store. Mindy was hoping it would be the last one.

Christine busied herself with looking at the dresses, while Mindy let her mind wander. She glanced around the store and saw someone who looked familiar, but she couldn't quite place her. She began to hear the girl's conversation with her friend.

"I told you it would be okay," the dark haired girl said.

"But after everything everyone has heard, I worry," her friend, who was a blonde, replied.

"He's not like everyone says."

"I guess you would know; you're the one dating him."

"Really, he confessed to being that way before but he's changed."

"If you say so. I just thought that with all the rumors, you'd never end up with Drake Parker."

That's why she was familiar. Mindy had seen Drake out with her a few times. She poked Christine in the arm.

"Isn't that Drake's girlfriend?" Mindy asked.

"Hmm?" Christine replied, glancing up. "Oh, yeah. Melissa. I didn't see her. I haven't met her yet, so she'll have no idea who I am. I guess we're both meeting her for Homecoming."

"Oh," Mindy responded. Christine seemed to suddenly hurry up in her search for a dress. Mindy didn't say anything. She was probably just frustrated at this point. Mindy glanced back at Melissa. She was leaving the store now.

"I found it!" Christine yelled. Mindy turned around. Finally. "I'm going to go try it on, I'll be right back."

* * *

Unfortunately for Mindy, Christine's discovery was not the perfect Homecoming dress. Fortunately, she found one in the next store they searched. Mindy made a joke that they should start searching for her prom dress now. Christine hadn't liked that much.

* * *

Homecoming eventually arrived. Everyone was meeting at Mindy's house, where they were promptly told to remove their shoes. Drake glanced over at Christine and David. Christine looked gorgeous, and David looked great. Drake sighed. Perhaps the better man had won. Of course, Drake hadn't really tried, but he still felt like he lost. Christine glanced over at Drake and Melissa. She thought Drake looked handsome, and Melissa was very pretty. Christine turned her gaze toward the floor. Meanwhile, Mindy was watching the eye movements of Drake and Christine. Sizing up dates? The best friend once over? Or were Drake's feelings for Christine still there and Christine was giving Melissa the once over? Confusion. After what happened last year, though, there was no way Mindy was getting involved this time. 

After being poked at by Mr. and Mrs. Crenshaw for half an hour, the limo finally arrived, making them all happy. Drake let Melissa in first. Then David let Christine in, so they ended up sitting in a row with Drake and Christine next to each other. Melissa was staring out the window, and David was busy making sure his tie was right. Drake looked over at Christine.

"You look beautiful," he said.

"You look pretty handsome yourself," Christine replied, smiling up at him.

Drake gave her a grin and turned back toward Melissa.

Neither Drake or Christine had noticed Mindy studying them again.

* * *

When they arrived at the dance, there was a rap song playing. Christine rolled her eyes and grabbed Mindy by the arm, so they could head to the bathroom. Mindy snatched Melissa by the arm as well, and the three girls left their dates. 

"They just abducted your girlfriend, Drake," Josh laughed.

"I don't get why they left," said David. "Normally don't you go in when you get to a dance? I mean, you know, to dance."

"Christine doesn't like rap music," Drake said. How did David not know that? "She'll be on the dance floor when they play a pop song."

"Oh," David replied.

"How long do you think they'll be?" Josh asked.

"I have no idea," Drake replied. "Five, ten minutes. An hour. A week to ten days. They're girls."

"Yeah," Josh chuckled.

* * *

"So, how did you meet Drake?" Mindy asked Melissa. 

"At the Premiere," Melissa replied. "I couldn't decide which movie to see, and he said it would be more worthwhile if I let him get me a soda."

"That sounds like Drake," Mindy replied. She checked to make sure her lip gloss hadn't worn off yet. She glanced over at Christine. "Are you ready?"

"I think so," Christine replied. The three girls left the bathroom and headed back to their dates. Christine kissed David, and Drake felt a pang of jealousy. He felt awful for it. He was with Melissa after all. He was supposed to be over Christine. They all headed into the gym where everything was decorated and the music was loud.

About two hours later, Christine sat down in a chair at the side of the gym. Drake slid into the seat next to her.

"How's it going?" he asked.

"Good," she replied.

"Hey, what do you think of Melissa?" Drake asked.

"She seems nice," Christine replied. Melissa hadn't really said much to Christine, so she wasn't quite sure about her. A slow song began to play. It was Usher's "U Got It Bad."

"Would your boyfriend get upset if I asked you to dance?" Drake asked.

"Would your girlfriend get upset?" Christine asked.

"Well, they should know we're just friends, right?" Drake responded. Christine smiled. They stood up and danced together. Drake was happy. It would only be for one song though. He couldn't have her. She was with someone else, and he was with someone else. That was the way it was now. Who said she ever had any feelings for him anyway? This was the way it was going to be.

_When you feel it in your body  
You found somebody who makes you change your ways  
Like hanging with your crew  
Said you act like you're ready  
But you don't really know  
And everything in your past  
You wanna let it go_

_I've been there, done it, f---ed around  
After all that this is what I found  
Nobody wants to be alone  
If you're touched by the words in this song  
Then Baby_

_U got it, u got it bad  
When you're on the phone  
Hang up then you call right back  
U got it, u got it bad  
If you miss a day without your friend  
Your whole life's off track  
U know u got it bad  
When you're stuck in the house  
You don't wanna have fun  
That´s all you think about  
U got it bad  
When you're out with someone  
But you keep on thinkin'  
'Bout somebody else  
U got it bad_

Drake sighed. Why'd he have to ask her to dance to this song?

* * *

A/N: Someone or something unwanted appears next chapter. Keep a look out for that. 


	5. Chapter 5: What Are You Doing Here?

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

_Chapter Five: What Are You Doing Here?_

* * *

Drake sat down in science Monday afternoon. He was almost late, but he'd gotten there before their teacher, so he was fine. 

"Right on time, huh?" Christine asked.

"Yep," Drake replied.

Christine smiled and shook her head. Their teacher, Mr. Danworth, walked into the room.

"Okay, class," he began. "There's a lot I need to tell you today because we're going to be starting our projects." Everyone in the class began to groan. Many people who got Mr. Danworth tried to get out of his class because of the semester projects. Christine hadn't been at Belleview long enough to know, and Drake hadn't cared since he didn't do much work anyway, so they both stayed. Meanwhile, Josh and Mindy stayed because they loved projects. "I know, I know. You'll be working in groups of four. First, each of you will choose a partner, and then I'll pair up two partners with two other partners to make the groups. You have thirty seconds to find a partner. Go."

"Hello partner," Drake said, looking at Christine.

"Drake, you'd better do work on this..."

"I will," Drake replied. "Don't worry. Do you really think I'd let you down?"

"When it comes to school work, I have no idea whether to trust you on that one or not."

"Gee, thanks. Fine. I promise I'll do work."

"Okay," Christine replied. She turned in the other direction to put away the flier Michelle gave her about the academic team.

"I'd do anything for you," Drake said quietly.

"Okay," said Mr. Danworth. "Time's up. Anyone not have a partner? Good. I'll put the pairs together now. Okay, let's see...Josh and Mindy, there's a surprise, with John and Sarah. Mark and Tom with Paul and Jessie. Hmm. Drake and Christine with Eric and Craig."

"Eric and Craig?" Christine asked, looking over at Drake.

"At least we'll get a good grade," Drake replied.

"But they act like a married couple," Christine said. "I'm convinced they've got something going on."

"Christine..." Drake said.

"They went to Niagra Falls together."

"Okay. Good point."

"Now," said Mr. Danworth, continuing his explanation after matching up everyone else. "You need to give me your project proposals by Friday. "If I don't get them by then, that's ten points off of your final grade. You may choose any topic we are covering this semester, whether it's gravity, inertia, whatever you decide." He began passing out sheets of paper. "These are the guidelines. They will tell you what you need and how much each portion of the project is worth. You may get into your groups and began discussing what you would like to do for your project."

There was a lot of noise as everyone moved around to get into their groups. Eric and Craig made their way over to Drake and Christine.

"What would you two like to do the project on?" Craig asked.

"Craig and I can't seem to decide between torque and inertia," Eric said.

"Huh?" asked Drake.

"Let's back those steam engines up a little bit," Christine said. "Why don't we choose something we've heard of rather than the complicated stuff that appears second semester?"

"Well, what's the fun in that?" asked Eric.

"How about we do our project on forces?" Christine offered. "It shouldn't get too difficult, but I'm sure you two will find something enjoyable in it."

"Okay," Craig replied.

"Torque has to do with force," Eric said. Christine looked at him, irritated.

"We're not doing our project on torque!"

* * *

Drake tossed his book bag in his bedroom after school the following Monday. They'd turned in their project proposal the Thursday before, so for once, Drake had done something early. He'd had Thursday night to goof off as normal. However, he'd actually done something. It felt good to accomplish something. Not to the point where he wanted to do it every day, but it felt okay. He made his way back down the stairs and paused at the sight on the sofa. He'd done this some months ago when Christine first came back. However, this time, he wasn't happy to see who was sitting on the sofa. 

"What are you doing here?" Drake asked.

"Thank you for the warm welcome," Ford replied.

Drake just stood there staring at the man. What _was_ he doing here? He had to have a reason or he wouldn't fly across the country just to see him. No, he had to have a reason.

"I'm waiting for an answer," Drake stated a bit coldly. He continued to stare at the man who was supposed to have been his father, but he ran away instead of accepting the responsibility that even though he no longer had a wife, he still had a son and a daughter who would need him.

Ford stared back at Drake with the same expression. Neither one heard the front door open or saw Megan walk through the door. She froze at the sight. Drake staring coldly at a man. Not just any man. She'd barely known him since she'd only been six when her parents divorced, but she could still remember who he was.

"Why are you here?" she asked timidly. Both Drake and Ford looked a bit startled as they realized Megan had entered the room.

"I'm here to make things right," Ford said.

_So he gives her an answer,_ Drake thought. _Then again, it wasn't very straight-forward._ "What the hell are you doing here?" Drake asked again.

"Did you not just hear..." Ford began.

"I heard clearly. What do you think needs to be made right?"

"You walked away before I could..."

"You ran away from me first. You ended it, not me."

"Drake..." Ford started.

"What? You gonna send me to my room? I'm sorry, only my _dad_ can do that."

"Would you both stop it?" Megan yelled. There were tears running down her face. She turned and ran up the stairs and into her bedroom. Drake and Ford heard a door slam.

"Well, I guess that's..." Ford started again. But Drake wasn't listening. He was already halfway up the stairs. "Where are you going? We're not finished."

Drake whipped back around. By now he was furious.

"No. We're finished for now. Right now, Megan needs me." Drake turned back around and continued his way upstairs. The nerve of that guy coming back to San Diego. What was there for him here? He had run away and hadn't spoken to anyone for six years. Did he think suddenly returning would make everything better? Some perfect year.

"Megan?" Drake said, knocking on her door.

"What do you want?" Megan asked. It was obvious she was crying, but she didn't want Drake to know that.

"Megan, can I come in?" Drake asked.

"Fine," came the voice from the other side of the door. Drake sighed and opened it. Megan was sitting on her bed, hugging a bear. He'd never seen her like this. She looked small and vulnerable. Drake sat down on the bed next to her.

"What's the matter Megan?"

"You should know."

"Megan!"

"He at least talked to you for a little while. He never even tried with me. How do you think I feel?"

Drake hadn't considered that. She was right. Ford had been wrong to completely slam the door on his daughter's life without even getting to know her at all.

"I'm sorry, Megan," Drake said. He pulled her into a hug. "I don't know why he did the things he did. He's not a part of our lives anymore, though. Not even mine. Walter is our dad now. You know that. He's helped Mom take good care of us. He's been better than Ford ever was. We're in this together. We've both been left without him for years. I don't know why he's here. I don't know what he expects. It'll be okay though. I promise."

* * *

Back downstairs, Audrey was arguing with Ford. 

"I told you it wouldn't be good for the kids to just walk in and see you," Audrey said.

"I think I know how to handle our kids Audrey," Ford replied.

"I thought you should have let me talk to my kids before they saw you, but you wouldn't listen."

"Audrey..."

"You should probably go now. My husband will be home soon."

"So that's how it's going to be?"

"Look, I'll talk to Drake and Megan. I can't guarantee they'll be happy that you're in town after this. Drake will be eighteen soon. Soon it will be his choice to see you. You can't make a court force him to do that, but don't you dare try to do that to Megan. Not after you left without trying to maintain a relationship with her."

"Who said I was going to take this to the courts? Now I see where Drake gets it from. I'm leaving. Let our kids know I'm around." With that, Ford left.

Audrey stared at the door. She could not believe him. Coming back after six years? What did he expect to prove? What did he expect to happen?

Drake and Megan came down the stairs. Audrey looked over at her children. _Her_ children. That was another thing that bothered her. Ford kept saying "our" kids. How could he say that? He hadn't spoken with either of them in six years, except for Drake's little trip to New York last spring.

"Mom," Drake said. "Why is he here?"

"I don't know," Audrey replied. "I didn't want you to find out that way. He didn't even call. He just showed up. I'm not happy about it. I wanted to talk to you both first to see what you wanted to do, but he wouldn't listen. I think you gave him quite a blast from the past when you went to New York last spring, Drake."

"I didn't think he'd come back here," Drake responded. "He just didn't seem to care."

"Megan," Audrey began. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Mommy," she replied.

Drake glanced down at her. She was not fine. He didn't know what she wanted, but he knew she wasn't fine. She hated what was happening.

"I'll think about talking to him again," Drake said.

"I will too," Megan agreed.

"That's all I'm going to ask of you two," Audrey replied.

* * *

A/N: Yep, he came back. Where am I going with it this time? You'll see. By the way, anyone who's had physics knows torque can be a pain. At least it was for me and the people in my class in eleventh grade. As always, please review.


	6. Chapter 6: Now What's Wrong?

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

_Chapter Six: Now What's Wrong?_

* * *

Drake was almost late to class on Tuesday. He didn't really care either. Christine looked over at him. Something was wrong. She could tell. 

"What?" Drake asked.

"Something's bothering you, isn't it?" Christine said.

"Why would you think something's bothering me?"

"Well, first of all, all I got was a 'what' ten seconds ago. Secondly, you know when something's bothering me. Why wouldn't I be able to do the same thing?"

"I..."

"Good morning class," Mrs. Haifer said, walking in the door.

"I'll tell you later," Drake said quickly.

Christine gave him one last glance.

"Okay," she said and turned back around to listen to Mrs. Haifer. She knew something was wrong, but she didn't know what. Something about him told her something had happened. What that was, she'd have to wait until he told her. She sighed. Life always had to be complicated.

* * *

Christine had tried to talk to Drake at lunch, but he told her he'd talk to her at the Premiere after school. It was personal, and he didn't want to risk the gossiping cheerleaders overhearing them. So now, she sat at a table at the Premiere as she waited for Drake to tell her what was wrong. 

"You know how people you really hoped you wouldn't see again always show up?" Drake asked. He gave a thought to David and then back to the real reason he was talking to Christine.

"I guess so," she replied. "What happened?"

"Ford came to San Diego."

"What?"

"He came back."

"Why?"

"He said he wanted to make things right. What ever that means. He's already screwed everything up."

"I hate to say it, but you told me to listen to what my dad had to say. Why don't you..."

"Because, I've already gone to see him, and he gave me lame excuses. I don't want to deal with it anymore."

"I'm sorry," Christine responded. "But if you don't listen, he might not leave you alone. Really, would it hurt?"

"I don't know. I'm sick of hearing him talk."

"Just think about it. How long is he here?"

"I have no idea. I don't know how long he can stay. I mean, he's got a wife and a son."

"You never know. You're his son too, Drake, and Megan's his daughter."

"But..."

"Whether you like it or not, it's true, and he flew across the country for some reason. He must care at least a little to do that."

"I don't know." Drake didn't want to think about it anymore. He wanted Ford to go back to New York and stay there. He glanced up and smiled at the person who walked into the Premiere.

"Hi, Drake," Melissa said, walking over to him.

"Hey," he replied.

"Here with your little friend?" Melissa asked.

The words "little friend" bothered Christine just a bit. She was his best friend after all, well aside from Josh. She didn't mind sharing the title, but to be resorted to "little friend" bugged her.

"You know what?" Melissa said. "We should double date. The next time your boyfriend is in town."

"Sure," Christine replied. Melissa looked at Drake for his approval.

"Why not?" Drake responded. His heart wouldn't be in it, but if it made the girls happy, he'd do it.

* * *

When Drake got home, he headed up to Megan's room. 

"Megan?" he called, knocking on the door. "Can I come in?"

"Fine," Megan said. She pushed a button on her remote to open the door.

"Seriously, how do you pay for all of this?" Drake asked.

"What do you want?" Megan asked, annoyed.

"Um, have you given any thought to Ford?"

"I don't know. Is it worth it?"

"I don't know. Need more time?"

"I think so."

"We should make this decision together anyway."

"Thanks, Drake," Megan said.

"No problem," Drake replied, smiling at his sister. He left the room. His mom was sitting on the sofa in the living room, and he explained to her that he and Megan wanted to talk about it together, to see if it was something they both wanted. Audrey agreed and called Ford at his hotel. He was a bit upset, but he said he had to go home. If they wanted to see him, he told her to tell him, and he'd be back.

* * *

A week later, David was in San Diego, so the four had their double date. Fortunately, Josh was working at the Premiere that night. He told Drake if it looked like he was going to attack David, he'd stop him. Josh really didn't know how Drake was dealing with this. It must have been okay since he was seeing Melissa. 

Drake and David walked over to the snack counter to buy drinks. David was going on about one of the sports teams at his school. Drake didn't know which sport he was talking about because he wasn't exactly listening, mainly because he didn't want to listen. Josh looked at Drake and pulled him aside for a moment.

"Hey," Josh said. "What position does David's best friend play?"

"What sport does his best friend play?" Drake replied.

"Look, you're here with Melissa. You can't do this. You should be here for her. I can't believe I'm the one telling you what to do about girls."

"I can't either. Sodas?"

"Oh, right, here," Josh replied, handing Drake two sodas. "That'll be..." Drake had already walked away from the counter. "Why am I not surprised?" Josh went back to working while trying to keep an eye on Drake. He was growing very concerned.

When Drake and David returned to the table, Melissa was telling Christine how much she loved Orlando Bloom. Christine didn't have a problem with Orlando Bloom, but she didn't think you should like an actor completely based on looks, which seemed to be the only reason Melissa liked him.

"...which is why I thought _Elizabethtown_ was a great movie," Melissa said.

"Well, I didn't really care for that one," Christine replied.

"No she didn't," David said, sitting down. "She walked out of that movie hating it. I guess she doesn't like Orlando Bloom or chick flicks."

Drake rolled his eyes. Christine liked chick flicks well enough, but she always said she'd rather laugh at a movie which was why they went to all the comedies together. Drake wondered about David. He didn't seem to know much about what Christine liked and didn't like. He hadn't known that she hated rap, and he just said he guessed that she didn't like Orlando Bloom. Shouldn't her boyfriend know certain things about her by now? Drake stopped himself. David was probably a better guy than Drake would ever be. He'd probably be forever faithful, and he was, well, perfect. Besides, Drake was out with Melissa. He should be focusing on her.

David leaned over and kissed Christine. Drake felt his blood start to boil.

"So, David," Drake began, "when are you going back to San Francisco?"

"Tomorrow," David replied.

"Good," Drake mumbled.

"Huh?" asked David.

"Oh, I see," Drake responded. "Yeah, that's what I said."

Christine gave Drake a funny look. What was the matter with him tonight? He wasn't exactly paying as much attention to Melissa as he probably should have been. Christine wanted to write it off as Drake freaking out because Ford had happened to be in town the previous week, but she couldn't.

* * *

David had left the next morning, so when Drake got to the Premiere that afternoon, Christine was alone. 

"Hey," Drake said.

"Hi," she replied.

"What's up?" he asked, sitting down.

"Actually, I wanted to ask you something."

"Shoot."

"You were acting kind of strange last night."

"How?"

"You really weren't paying much attention to Melissa. You seemed a little out of it. Does this have anything to do with Ford being here?"

"No," Drake replied. "I'm going to talk about it with Megan, and until we decide something, he's gone back to New York."

"Then, what's the matter?"

"Why do you always seem to think something's wrong?"

"I don't. You just weren't acting like you were very interested in what you were supposed to be doing last night, which was be out with your girlfriend."

"Well, I was."

"Could have fooled me."

"What is your deal? First you bug me about _him_, and then you accuse me of not wanting to be with my girlfriend."

"I didn't accuse you of anything!"

"Could have fooled me," Drake replied, throwing her own words back at her. "I'm out of here."

Drake left the Premiere in a huff. Josh glanced up from the snack counter at Christine. She looked very unhappy. Josh told Gavin he was taking a break, which Gavin didn't really care about, but Josh was supposed to tell someone, and Gavin was the only choice at the moment. He walked over to the table where Christine was sitting.

"Hi," Josh said. "You okay?"

"I don't know," Christine replied. "He's mad at me. I just wanted to know if anything was wrong."

"I know," Josh responded. "You only want what's best. Drake just takes a while to figure that out sometimes."

"I don't understand though."

Josh sighed. He considered telling Christine what Drake had planned to tell her back in April. How Drake felt. Could Josh really do that though? No. It was Drake's business, and Josh didn't want to ruin Drake's relationship with his girlfriend. But did Drake really have a relationship with Melissa? Yes, they went out on dates and kissed and did all the things couples did together, but did Drake really feel it? Josh knew that's what Drake wanted now. To actually feel like he cared about someone and have them care about him in return. Well, what did Drake have with Melissa? Josh could tell it wasn't that. He was going to talk to Drake. He was going to interfere in his brother's love life. While he hated to do it, he needed to do it. He didn't want Drake to make a mistake. Josh glanced back at Christine and shrugged.

"I don't understand either."

* * *

"Drake!" Josh yelled to his brother when he got home. 

"Yeah?" asked Drake, walking into the kitchen to make a sandwich.

"We need to talk."

"About what? If this is about your rash again..."

"No," Josh said, irritated with Drake for even mentioning that. "Look, do you know how upset Christine was when you left the Premiere?"

"Hey, she started it," Drake replied, opening the fridge and taking out sandwich ingredients.

"What?"

"She started it with always asking if anything's wrong. Nothing's wrong, and even if something was, maybe I just want to drown in my own misery."

"I remember when she first came back here, you constantly asked her if anything was wrong."

"That's different. Something was wrong. Nothing's wrong with me."

"Oh, really? What do you have with Melissa?"

"She's my girlfriend," Drake responded, looking annoyed with Josh for asking such a dumb question.

"Really? Because I wouldn't call what the two of you have a romantic relationship."

"What?"

"You don't connect with her. You don't stay up for hours talking to her on the phone. You don't do anything that shows you care about her."

"You ever figure that maybe that's not me?" Drake asked, turning back to the counter to finish making his sandwich.

"You do all that with Christine though."

Drake slowly turned back around to face Josh.

"What? Are you suggesting that I haven't forgotten about my feelings for Christine? That guilt should be tearing me inside out because of what I did to her today? Well, Josh, you're wrong. I couldn't be happier." Drake took his sandwich and headed up the stairs.

"Yeah, that's what Glinda said!" Josh called after his brother. He sighed. Drake had left his sandwich stuff on the counter. Typical. Josh began to make a sandwich for himself. He might as well, everything was out anyway.

* * *

Drake got to his room and turned on the stereo. He couldn't believe Christine or Josh. Both accused him of not wanting a relationship with his girlfriend. Of course he did, otherwise he wouldn't be with her. Josh also obviously thought he still had feelings for Christine. Yeah. That was a laugh. He was just protective of her because she was his best friend. That was all. Still, maybe he shouldn't have stormed out on Christine the way he did. She only talked to him about it because she cared. Drake sighed. So maybe he did feel guilty about arguing with Christine. It wasn't her fault. Great, now he felt bad. He had to fix this, but how? 


	7. Chapter 7: A Frightening Discovery

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

A/N: Drake and Christine have not yet cleared things up between them. That'll happen next chapter. They are acting civil to each other, but you know, it was Drake who stormed out and now he's gotta be the one to fix it, but you'll see. Also, I am bringing up the idea of two teenagers thinking about having sex...at least one anyway. No, I will not write any descriptive scenes like that. There will only be conversation. There are reasons I gave this a "T" rating and the discussions are one of them. It will come up in other chapters as well. But don't worry, not too much. Simply someone freaking out and then trying to explain the baseball metaphor in this one, so it will all only be conversation. ;)

_Chapter Seven: A Frightening Discovery_

* * *

Drake sat in Christine's living room. They were working on their project that day. He was supposed to be doing calculations, but it was a problem. Drake didn't understand it much. Craig walked by him. 

"Drake, have you finished that yet?" he asked.

"No," Drake replied.

"You've been at it for twenty minutes. It's only two problems."

"I know," Drake responded.

"Well, what's taking so long?"

Christine walked into the room.

"Something wrong?" Christine asked.

"Drake's slow," Craig replied and walked out of the room.

Drake felt like wrapping his arms around Craig's scrawny little neck. Christine came and sat down next to Drake.

"You going to bug me about not getting this too?" Drake asked. Eric had been reluctant to give Drake the problems to do. Craig had told him to do it, and now Drake was letting him down. Drake hadn't even asked to do it.

"No," Christine replied. "Craig just can't seem to figure out why some people don't do well. It's hard when his head's that thick."

Drake smiled slightly.

"You want some help?" Christine asked.

"Yes, I would love some help," Drake replied. She hadn't forgiven him for getting angry with her. Drake was being nice as pie to her. She was acting pretty kind toward him for someone who had just been yelled at by her best friend. Drake hoped the plan he was forming in his head worked out well.

"Here," she said. She leaned over and did her best to help him. She didn't want to do it for him, but he managed to finish it with her guiding him.

"Thanks," he said. "It's not easy when your group members think you're dumb."

"You're not dumb," she said. "Forget about those two."

"Well, if I go to college, they know I'm going to community college. They think I'm dumb for that."

"Well, I'm going to community college too," she replied. "No sense wasting my money if I don't even know what I'm going to do yet. It does not make you dumb." She gave him a peck on the cheek and left the room. Drake sighed. As much as he loved it, he didn't want a quick kiss on the cheek from her. He didn't want to give her a quick kiss on the cheek either. He wanted to take her in his arms and kiss her like he meant it. However, that wasn't happening. He hated the thought. He was still going out with Melissa. It was now November and things were going pretty well. Pretty well. That's how things had always been going. Drake didn't want them to go pretty well, he wanted them to go great with the girl he wanted. Of course, he was in hot water with Christine anyway at the moment. They were probably only getting along this well because Eric and Craig were in the other room. Then again, it wasn't like a kiss on the cheek would have been to make them think nothing was wrong. Not all best friends did things like that. He had to do something to make sure she'd forgiven him and fast.

Christine walked back through the room.

"Where are you going?" Drake asked.

"I've got to get a book for the project," Christine replied. "Oh, before I forget, will you tell your mom that my mom and I were already invited to David's family's house for Thanksgiving dinner?"

"Sure," Drake replied.

"Christine!" yelled Eric. "Get in here!"

"But I need to..." she began.

"I need help!"

"Oh for...Drake could you get it? It's a brown book and it's on my desk in the row with all the other books. The lovebirds need me."

"Sure," Drake replied, laughing a bit. He got up and headed up to Christine's room. He was a bit upset. His mom had invited Christine and her mom to their house for Thanksgiving dinner. Apparently, David's family had asked first. This made Drake jealous. No, he wasn't jealous, just disappointed. There'd be other times.

Drake opened Christine's door and headed toward her desk. He saw the book she was talking about. He pulled it out of the little row of books. He accidently knocked one of the smallest books over and it fell open.

Drake realized he'd accidently opened her diary. Drake knew he should close it and forget about it. However, he glanced at the page and saw his name. He couldn't help it. He had to read it.

_Why is Drake so upset with me? I only tried asking him what was wrong. He's been acting strange for a while now. I can't understand it. I wish Drake would say or do something about what happened. If he hadn't gotten so angry with me maybe I would have told Mom I'd rather cancel on David's family for Thanksgiving. Then again, that doesn't make me look good in the eyes of my boyfriend's parents either._

_I don't think I've ever had a better boyfriend than David. I even think I might be in love with him. And now we're going to his family's house for Thanksgiving dinner this year. That's quite a huge step. I've really only met his parents. I guess it will be interesting to meet everyone else._

_There's a thought that's been running through my head a lot lately. I do feel that I may love David. I wonder if he loves me. Maybe we're ready to take things to the next level._

Drake felt his face grow hot. He knew he should stop, but he continued reading.

_I think I want to lose my virginity to David._

Drake slammed the book shut and placed it where it originally was. He didn't need to read anymore. All of his hopes that maybe she didn't care about David as much as it seemed were dashed on the rocks. Drake felt his heart ache. She wanted David to be the first guy she had sex with? Drake felt his stomach twist into knots. He felt sick, but he didn't feel like throwing up. This was a new feeling for him. Drake picked up the book Christine had asked him to get and slowly made his way downstairs.

Drake crossed the living room and headed into the kitchen, looking like he was a million miles away.

"Is something wrong?" Christine asked.

"No," said Drake, snapping back to reality. She'd never forgive him for reading her diary.

"Wow," said Craig. "It's almost seven o'clock. Eric and I have to go. We'll see you guys later."

Craig and Eric left.

Drake slowly began to gather up his things.

"Drake," said Christine. "Do you want to..."

"I have to go too," Drake replied. "See you later." He headed out the door, leaving Christine very confused. Something was wrong, but he was hiding it. She wanted to talk. She wanted to tell him she'd forgiven him for the other day. She'd have to do that some other time. He clearly wanted to be alone.

* * *

Drake lie in his bed. He was in a bit of shock. How could she? David? She wanted to make love to him? Drake couldn't understand his response. He should be over Christine by now. Maybe he was just feeling over-protective. 

How could she choose David? Drake tried to find an answer. They'd been dating since last spring. About April. It had been about seven months. Drake couldn't believe he'd survived those seven months. Drake was still lost in his thoughts when Josh walked into the room.

"Check it out," Josh said. "The new game for the GameSphere!" Josh noticed Drake wasn't paying attention. "Drake? What's up with you?"

"Huh?" said Drake, snapping his head back. "What?"

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"This isn't still about that argument that you had with Christine, is it?"

"No, I think I know how I'm going to try to fix that anyway." Christine wanted him to say or do something. Well, he would definitely do something about it.

"Okay," Josh said. "You want to play the new game?"

"What new game?" Drake asked.

"The one for the GameSphere. Didn't you hear me?"

"Oh, sorry. No. I've got a lot on my mind."

"Well, let the ultimate gaming experience make you forget your troubles."

Drake sighed. He was willing to try anything to get this off of his mind. He didn't even care that Josh took the purple controller.

Halfway through the game, Josh realized Drake was losing. Very badly. It wasn't just falling behind a few points. No, Drake's score was rock bottom, and Josh couldn't figure out why. He leaned forward and shut off the game.

"What'd you do that for?" Drake asked.

"Because you're not into the game," Josh said. "Something is really bothering you. Now are you going to tell me what it is?"

"I can't," Drake responded.

"Why not?"

"It's personal."

"We're brothers. We know everything personal about each other."

"Not everything," Drake replied. He thought about it. How would Josh respond?

"Josh..." Drake began, "if you had a girlfriend, but you also had a crush, and you found out the girl you had a crush on wanted to, uh, round the bases with another guy, how would you feel?"

"But I'm dating Mindy, and I don't have a crush on anyone else. And what do you mean round the bases?" Josh asked, clueless.

"You know...homerun..." Drake urged.

"What? Are we still talking about relationships?"

Drake stared at Josh, incredulous. How did he not know the old baseball metaphor?

"How would you feel if she wanted to sleep with another guy?" Drake practically yelled.

"But I don't have a crush," Josh replied. Now Drake was losing his patience.

"Hypothetically, how would you feel?" Drake tried.

"I don't know. I mean, I'd have my girlfriend, right? What does this have to do with your game score, which only compares to that of a Detroit Lions' game by the way?"

Drake wanted to bang his head on the table. It was like pulling teeth.

"Do you think you'd feel insanely jealous or just over-protective because you were really good friends?" Drake questioned.

"I thought she was a crush," Josh said. "Wait a second...Drake, are you talking about Christine?"

"Um..."

"She wants to sleep with David? She told you that?"

"No, not exactly."

"Then how do you know that?"

"Well, see, her diary kinda fell open, and..."

"YOU READ HER DIARY?" Josh yelled.

"Only the half page," Drake replied.

"Only the...Drake, do you know what she'll do to you if she finds out?"

"Nothing good," Drake responded.

"She'll kill you. Then she'll throw your body to the wolves."

"Thank you for the reassurance of my gruesome fate."

"Sorry, but you read her diary. That is, like, the one place a woman bears all. It's sacred. You do not read it."

"I know, but I did. I didn't mean to...it just fell open."

"You could have closed it."

"Would you stop making me feel guilty? Oh, man, my dreams will be plagued by images of those two together. I don't think I can handle that."

"Then think about Melissa."

"Josh, we've been dating for two months! If I want to get beyond being that kind of guy..."

"No, not that. Just think about all the good things about her. Just how nice it is to kiss her and stuff like that. Maybe it will help. Meanwhile, if you don't want to become wolf feed, I suggest you not tell Christine about her diary 'falling open' in front of your eyes. She will not buy that."

"I know." Drake glanced in the other direction, the same way he had been when Josh found him in their bedroom about an hour earlier.

"Drake," Josh said.

"What?"

"I hope everything works out for you in the end."

"So do I, and I have to start making this work out on my own by getting her to forgive me for what I said and did the other day."

"How?"

"I've got a plan."


	8. Chapter 8: Christine, I Mean Melissa

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

_Chapter Eight: Christine, I Mean Melissa_

* * *

Drake paced the floor of Christine's house. They had been working on the project, and Eric and Craig had just left. Christine had gone to the store to get groceries for dinner since her mom couldn't stop on the way home. Drake offered to clean up which shocked Christine, but she agreed to it. Drake thought Christine still seemed a bit upset about what he'd done the other day. Drake couldn't blame her, but he hoped what he was about to do would make things better. If only who he was waiting for would get there soon. The doorbell finally rang, and Drake checked to see who it was. He smiled and let them in the house.

* * *

Drake was up in his room reading a magazine when his cell phone rang. He checked the number to see if he knew who it was. Too many hobos had been calling him lately. The last plan of revenge on Megan completely backfired. She just had to figure out their plan and get her own alien. They'd get her someday. It was Christine's number. She was either calling to accept his apology or ask "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" Drake hoped it was to accept his apology. 

"Hello," Drake said, finally answering his phone.

"Hi," said Christine. "Wow, um, you sure try to make a point don't you?"

"When did you find them?"

"After dinner. I hadn't gone up to my room until then."

"So..." said Drake.

"So, what?"

"Do you forgive me? I acted like a total jerk, and I'm sorry. You were only trying to do what you thought was best for me, and..."

"Drake, I forgive you. Maybe I pressed too hard, but I get worried about you."

"Hey, I'll be alright."

"Actually," Christine began, "I'd already forgiven you the other day."

"Really?" Drake asked, feeling happy. Then he realized he'd bought twelve dozen yellow roses, placed them all around her room, and she'd already forgiven him. He felt his eye start to twitch.

"Oh?" Drake replied, trying not to sound upset. Truthfully, he was glad he did it. He wanted her to know he cared. "Want to do something this weekend?"

"Actually, I'm going to San Francisco this weekend."

Drake swallowed hard.

"I thought you were going for Thanksgiving."

"My mom and I are, but I'm going alone this weekend."

"I see," Drake responded. To do what exactly? She was going alone first. Why? Was she going to do what she'd talked about in her diary? Drake shuddered at the thought.

"Yeah. Look, I have to go. Thank you for the roses, Drake."

"Bye," he said and hung up. He stood in the middle of his room and glanced around. He opened his mouth and let out a loud yell.

Josh came pounding up the stairs and flung the door open, wielding a tennis racket.

"What's wrong? Did the theater thug come back?"

"No," Drake replied, rolling his eyes as Josh quickly scanned the room. "I just found out I bought Christine twelve dozen yellow roses to get her to forgive me, and guess what? She already had."

"You bought twelve dozen roses for a girl you aren't even dating?"

"Well, I care about her. You care about Mindy and spent a hundred dollars on ICE for her."

"Twelve dozen roses?"

"ICE!"

* * *

Christine was in San Francisco, and Drake was going insane. Was she going to talk things over with David before she allowed him to take away her innocence? Or had they done that already? Drake hated thinking about what she could possibly be doing with David. 

He was actually on a date with Melissa. He knew he should be thinking about her. He had to beat himself up for everything lately. Fortunately, he'd gotten Christine to forgive him. Things had to work out with Melissa. He had to forget about his feelings for Christine because, at the moment, she was doing God knows what with David. She seemed to have no interest at all in feelings of more than friendship for Drake, which depressed him, but he still blamed himself for never doing anything about when he had the chance. He just had to get scared and not do anything.

"...Drake? Drake?" said Melissa, interrupting his thoughts.

"What is it Christine?" he asked. Then he froze. _Oh. My. God. I did NOT. I DID. Damn it._ "Uh, I mean...Melissa...I uh, sorry, I was um, uh..."

To say that Melissa looked pissed would have been the understatement of the year.

"Did you just call me Christine?" she asked.

"No, I mean, yes, er, I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking, and it kind of slipped out..."

"That's obvious," Melissa said. She seemed to have calmed down for a moment. This frightened Drake for a second. "Drake, what do we have?"

"Huh?"

"This isn't exactly a meaningful relationship."

"Oh, come on, I mean..."

"You have feelings for Christine, don't you?"

"What makes you say that?"

"You called me Christine," she said, slightly irritated. "It's kind of obvious that way."

"Is it?"

"I'm surprised this didn't happen sooner," Melissa said.

"What do you mean?"

"You do appear to have feelings for her. You hate when she's with David. I can tell."

"You can?"

"Yeah. Look, I don't think we should date anymore, Drake."

"But, it's not like I could go out with her anyway. I mean, she has a boyfriend."

"But you have these feelings for her that obviously aren't going away. I'm not what you want. I can't give you what you want. This would never work out anyway. I don't want you to be unhappy with the person you're with."

"Maybe you're right. I'd rather not hurt you by leading you on."

"Then that's it, I guess."

"Yeah," Drake replied. Never had he let go of a girl this easily, and even when he did break up with someone, this was the first time he didn't have anyone waiting for him. This was new. Drake decided though that this was for the best. After all, he didn't want to hurt any girl. He should probably thank Ford for setting the example of what not to do.

* * *

Drake lie on his bed thinking about what had happened that night. He sighed. It was for the better. Everything about Melissa, he thought was better in Christine. Besides, he knew Christine. Melissa loved chick flicks, that was quite obvious. It was all he saw with her. Drake had only gone to them before as a make out movie, but he didn't do that with Melissa. Christine didn't dislike chick flicks, but if she went to a movie with Drake, she made sure he'd like it too. How many Jon Heder or Vince Vaughn movies had they seen together? Quite a few. 

Melissa was just a bit too sensitive for Drake. And her eyes. They were brown. It wasn't even like they were a chocolate brown, just brown. There was no captivating glow like Christine's green eyes. Drake knew he was in too deep, but what was he supposed to do? He heard his cell phone ring. It was Christine. She'd arrived in San Francisco the night before and she'd talked to him then. He knew nothing happened between her and David then because his parents had been around, but what about tonight? He was scared to answer the phone.

"Hello," he said, picking up.

"Hey, Drake!" said Christine on the other end.

"Where are you?"

"My hotel. I just spent the entire day with David's family."

"The entire day?" Drake asked.

"Yeah. There wasn't a time when I didn't see them, literally."

Drake relaxed a bit. If they hadn't been alone, then they couldn't have had sex. Drake knew that once they did, that was it for him. He didn't know why, but he did.

"I'm exhausted, but I'll be home tomorrow afternoon. I'll see you then?"

"Sure," Drake replied. "Goodnight."

After hanging up, Drake let out a huge sigh. He fell back on his bed. He knew it wouldn't happen on Thanksgiving. She'd be with her mom and his parents all day. One of his worries had faded. For now.

* * *

A/N: A bit short, but chapter nine is shorter. I apologize in advance, but it will begin to get things moving again even though it's short. Please review.


	9. Chapter 9: Excuses Again

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

A/N: The project grade is totally irrelevent to the story, but I thought some of you might want to know how that went. :P

_Chapter Nine: Excuses Again_

* * *

Congratualtions everyone, Mr. Danworth said to the group of Drake, Christine, Eric, and Craig. You all get A's. Yes, even you Mr. Parker. You actually did very well. 

"Yeah, because Christine helped him half the time," Eric mumbled, leaning against the edge of the board that was decorated with holly leaves for Christmas. Christine jabbed Eric in the ribs. He shut up.

Mindy stared straight ahead.

"WHAT?" she cried. Josh opened a book and hid his face. He knew what was coming. "How did Drake get an A, and I got an A-!"

"Mindy," Josh said quietly. "Our report was on something much harder than their's was..."

Drake was actually satisfied with the A. Christine had helped him a little, but he had done a lot of the work himself. He was actually proud of it. Was he this willing to do that everyday? Maybe. Maybe not. He'd see how he felt about his homework that day.

* * *

Drake hadn't wanted to ruin Megan's holiday by bringing up Ford, so he didn't mention it. He knew their mom didn't say anything for the same reason, but Drake knew if they were ever going to get through this, they'd have to talk about it. He hated doing this. He didn't want to bother her on Christmas, which should be the happiest day of the year for a kid. He didn't want to bother her on New Year's either, especially since Josh had been walking around stressing that it meant a time for new beginnings. Josh also mentioned a chance to do certain things, which annoyed Drake. He knew what Josh wanted him to do, but there was no way he was going to do it. Anyway, here it was, a week after New Year's and Drake knew he had to talk to his sister. 

Drake knocked on Megan's door, which she opened with her remote.

"Megan, we need to talk about Ford," Drake said.

"But..." she began.

"Look, if we don't do this soon it's only going to keep bothering us."

"Okay," Megan agreed. Drake knew this would be hard for her, especially since she'd barely known Ford.

Drake sat down on the edge of Megan's bed, where she had been sitting.

"I know how I feel about it," Drake began. "How do you feel?"

"I don't know him," Megan replied. "He left when I was six. There wasn't enough time for me to know him."

"I know," Drake responded. "Do you want to know him?"

"I don't know. What was he like when you saw him?"

"He wanted to explain, but his explanations were more like excuses. Like he was dancing around the truth. He'd blame Mom or claim it was too hard. I don't know. He broke her heart. He broke mine. And I guess he broke your's without really realizing it."

"Is it wrong that I want to at least talk to him?"

Drake looked a bit startled, but he understood.

"No, Megan. It's not wrong at all. I got to talk to him. You didn't. If you want to see how he treats you, you can."

"I don't want to talk to him alone," Megan said timidly.

This was a new side of Megan to Drake. She never acted vulnerable, unless she was pulling a prank on him and Josh and it was required that she at least act that way. This was very different.

"You don't have to talk to him alone," Drake replied. "I'll be there if you want."

"Thank you," Megan responded. Then she did something she didn't do much anymore. She gave Drake a hug. Last time they'd talked in her room, Drake had hugged Megan. Now she was hugging him. Drake sighed. Maybe this was a sign that Megan was growing up or at least thought she was. She'd taken to calling their dad Walter lately. No one knew why, but she had. Maybe it was because she was getting older and felt she needed to do it. Whatever the reason, Drake wished she wouldn't. Walter was Dad. Ford wasn't anymore. Of course, that would be for Megan to decide.

Drake and Megan got off of Megan's bed and headed downstairs to talk to their mom. Audrey listened to Megan and said she'd call Ford.

* * *

A few days later, Audrey had called Ford. She wasn't happy with his response. One night, when Josh was at the Premiere and Walter was also working, she asked Drake and Megan if she could talk to them. Drake and Megan sat on the couch, unsure of what their mom wanted. They knew she'd called Ford, but what had he said? 

"Drake, Megan," Audrey began. "I called Ford today."

"And?" asked Drake. Their mom wouldn't be talking to them like this unless something was wrong.

"He can't come until April."

"What?" asked Drake, irritated.

"Why April?" Megan questioned.

"He can't leave his work until then."

"Excuses again," Drake said. He slowly got up and headed to his room. Why did this disappoint him? He'd already dealt with this. He'd already moved past it. Was he this unhappy because Megan hadn't had her chance yet? Maybe. How was Megan anyway? She'd just found out she'd have to wait a few months before Ford would see her. It was still January, so April was a little far off still. Drake left his room and went to find Megan. She was in the bathroom, holding Josh's toothbrush. Drake didn't even want to know what she had planned.

"Are you okay?" Drake asked her.

"I'm fine," she replied. "I guess I have a little more time to think about what I want to say anyway."

Drake stared at his sister. On the bright side, she was still pulling pranks, so he wasn't too worried, but he was going to keep his eye on her.

* * *

Later that night, Drake heard Josh come home and moving around in the bathroom.

"MEGAN!" Drake heard. As glad as he was that Megan's pranks showed she was okay, he really didn't want to know what she'd done to Josh's toothbrush.

* * *

A/N: Short, I know, but I said it would be. Tomorrow is the chapter on Valentine's Day...Drake is alone. Christine is going to drop a couple huge hints about things, so watch for those. Please review.


	10. Chapter 10: The Roses Were Pink

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

A/N: Drake's road of paranoia ends here. A few hints are dropped. Enjoy the chapter and please review when you've finished reading.

_Chapter Ten: The Roses Were Pink_

* * *

Drake never thought he'd feel this way, but he hated Valentine's Day this year. It wasn't the fact that he didn't have a girlfriend, but part of it was the fact that it was in a week, and he didn't even have a date. It wasn't even that he didn't want one. He did, but he only wanted it to be with one certain person. And that one certain person was talking about doing the one thing he didn't want to know that she was doing with her boyfriend. Drake knew nothing could have happened because David came to San Diego over Christmas break and that when they were together, Christine's mom had always been very close by since she was teaching this year and had her break as well. Drake had a feeling, though, that Valentine's Day would be the day it happened between those two. He paced his bedroom. He barely heard Josh walk in the room. 

"What are you doing?" Josh asked.

"I don't know," Drake replied. "I just keep thinking about Christine and David."

"Oh, you mean how they're considering having sex?"

"Yes," Drake responded, a bit irritated.

"I don't see why you're so unhappy with this. I mean, you care about Christine. It's a beautiful thing. Two people in love, moving as one. It's the most wonderful feeling in the world to be with the person you love like that. Don't you want that for her?"

"...and you know this how?" Drake asked, giving Josh an odd look.

"Ummmm..."

"OH MY GOD!"

"Look, Drake..."

"OH MY GOD!"

"Drake..."

"I don't want to hear anymore!"

"But..."

"LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA!" Drake sang with his fingers in his ears.

"So much for maturity," Josh commented.

"So much for my brother keeping the things I really don't need to here about him and his girlfriend doing to himself."

"Drake," Josh said. "Let's be serious. I really think you need to get over Christine. If you're not going to tell her how you feel..."

"I tried that already! It didn't work! What do I do now?"

"I don't know," Josh sighed. "I really don't know."

* * *

Drake woke up the morning after Valentine's Day. A chill went down his spine. It had to be done. Drake buried his face in his pillow and groaned. He could never be with her now. David had to be sweet and appealing and smart...Drake sighed. It was time to start moving on.

* * *

Drake sat at a table at the Premiere trying to find girls. For some reason, his old methods just weren't working for him now. Rating them by their hotness didn't appeal to him. He stood up and left. Josh stood at the counter watching him. He shook his head. Christine walked by and looked at Josh. 

"What's the matter with Drake?" Christine asked. Josh could tell she was very concerned. He remembered wanting to tell her about Drake's feelings. Maybe he should. Then this could all finally come to an end. But what if Christine didn't care about Drake that way? Josh hated to admit it, but she probably had slept with David the previous night.

"Maybe you should go talk to him," Josh said. Yes, that had to be the best thing she could do.

* * *

Drake sat at his house waiting for Christine. She had called and had given him the "We need to talk" bit. What was she going to say? Had she found out about how he felt about her somehow and she was going to tell him it would never happen because she'd already been with a real man? Drake shook his head. He had to get rid of those thoughts. The doorbell rang, and Drake jumped. He opened the door and let Christine inside. 

"What did you want to talk about?" Drake asked.

"I want to know what's wrong with you," Christine replied. Maybe that sounded a little harsh, but something was wrong with him. She knew that.

"Oh, not this again," Drake said. "Didn't we get into a fight because of this last time?"

"Yes, but I know something's wrong. You're acting weird."

"I can't be hiding a surprise from anyone like my mom or Megan? Something has to be wrong?"

"If you were hiding a surprise for your mom or Megan, you would't freak out about it outside of your house unless you saw them when you were taking care of that surprise."

"Okay, good point." Drake sat down on the couch. Looking at her actually hurt. Ever since he woke up that morning it felt like a knife had been run through his heart, and looking at her made it feel like it was being pushed deeper in. He couldn't have her. It was unbearable.

"Drake, why won't you talk to me?" Christine pleaded, sitting down next to him.

"What do you mean? We're talking."

"You don't answer me. I know something's bothering you, but I don't know what it is because you're too stubborn to tell me."

"And you're too feisty to back off."

"Exactly."

"I know you hide things too though," Drake said. "So don't act like it's a big deal that I'm keeping something from you."

"What? You know about practically everything that's bothered me for the past year."

"Hmm. Did you ever think to tell me you wanted to discuss what happened when I got upset with you? Does David know how you feel about him? How you're in love with him?"

"What are you talking about?" Christine asked.

"Oh, come on, in your diary, you...uh..." Damn. He really shouldn't have said that.

"You read my diary?" she asked angrily.

"I'm sorry. It kind of just fell open," Drake replied.

"Just fell open?"

"Yes."

"You didn't have to read it!"

"I know, but you should really keep a lock on there."

"Lock? It's me and my mom, Drake. Who's going to read it? Wait, apparently you. How can I trust you now?"

"I didn't mean to read it. I swear. It just fell open and I noticed my name, and you mentioned David and how you were thinking of...uh..."

"Thinking of...oh no, Drake! That's my business. My personal business. What gives you the right to read that?"

"Why would you want to sleep with him?"

"Because...I care about him, and he cares about me."

"I do too," Drake replied softly.

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm sorry. That is your business. I shouldn't have read it. Maybe I felt over-protective when I saw that." Hopefully she'd buy that. It sounded better than, "Yeah, I read your diary because I saw my name and freaked out about you writing about David since I'm really jealous that you're with him and not me, and after I read it, I've been too paranoid to properly function." Yeah, somehow he didn't see that going over very well.

"Overprotective?"

"We've been friends for a long time. I guess I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I see," she replied. "That's my place, you know? You got into my personal space."

"I know, and I'm sorry. Really, if I hadn't...never mind."

"What?"

"It's nothing."

"That's all you read?" she asked.

"Yeah, nothing else, don't worry. I didn't read about any of your other declarations of love to David."

"I see." She paused for a moment. "We didn't do anything."

"What? I thought by Valentine's..."

"I thought Valentine's Day would be it too, but he brought me pink roses."

Pink roses? What did that have to do with anything?

"Drake, do you know why I wanted to be friends with you in the first place?" Christine asked suddenly.

"Why?" he asked. The question surprised him. It had come out of nowhere.

"I had a crush on you."

"What?"

"I did."

"We were in preschool."

"I know, but you were cute."

"Hey, were cute? Aren't I still?"

"Yeah, you are," she replied, smiling.

"You're shy toward everyone else, wouldn't you be more shy around someone you had a crush on?"

"Well, maybe," she responded. "But you were easy to talk to, even if you thought I had cooties."

"Can we not talk about that?" Drake asked. He knew he was never going to hear the end of it, as long as he lived.

"Fine, but you'll hear about it again," Christine said, smiling.

"I don't doubt it," Drake replied. "Am I forgiven for this whole diary fiasco?"

Christine looked at Drake and sighed.

"Yes, Drake," she said. "You are. Just don't let it _ever_ happen again."

"Okay, gotcha." Drake stopped.

"What?"

"I can't believe you had a crush on me."

"Is it really that weird for you?"

"Well, no. I just didn't expect you to ever say that."

"I didn't think I'd ever tell you. There's a lot of things I haven't told you as well. I might not even ever tell you some of those things."

"I know," Drake said. "I'm the same way. There's always the little things, isn't there?"

* * *

A/N: Okay, okay, I know I promised Walter in this story. He is coming up soon, don't worry. Well, the title of the next chapter is "Dad." Gee, wonder what that's about. :P Yes, I am finally pulling Walter into the story. Oh, and there's three chapters to go. 


	11. Chapter 11: Dad

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

_Chapter Eleven: Dad_

* * *

"He brought me pink roses..." 

Drake suddenly heard the noise of his alarm clock. He was dreaming again. This time, about how David gave Christine pink roses for Valentine's Day. Why had this bothered Drake for the past couple weeks? Maybe David couldn't afford red ones? Then again, Christine wouldn't care. She had told Drake herself that a single red rose meant "I love you," so if he could only afford one, it would have been fine. Wait...that was it. If he'd bought her red, she would have taken it as a sign saying that he loved her. She wanted love before she did anything like that. Drake sighed. That was it.

Josh had been sitting on his bed, watching Drake.

"Okay, so, are you just gonna sit there all day or are you going to get out of bed?" Josh asked.

"Huh?" Drake asked.

"Never mind," Josh replied. "As long as you're up, we better get moving. School day."

"Don't remind me. At least it's March. We'll be out of school soon."

"Yeah, finally." Josh paused. He'd gotten into college and was moving to his dorm in August. Drake would be at home, taking classes at a community college because he couldn't get in anywhere else since he'd spent his entire high school career goofing around and not doing homework. Actually, Josh was shocked he was doing this. He'd expected Drake to finally go see Alan Crimm. When Josh asked him what classes he was going to take, Drake had told him he'd be taking the basics and some psychology courses. Josh almost fainted when Drake told him about the psychology. However, Drake explained his reasoning. He told Josh that he didn't want kids who had parents who divorced and felt abandoned to go through that feeling of being alone and that they actually did have people that cared about them and new people would come into their lives as well. Josh pointed out to Drake that even community college courses would be difficult. Drake had said he knew that. Josh wasn't too worried. When Drake wanted something, he went for it. He just didn't want to be the class genius. Josh knew Drake had that kind of potential, but he didn't want it. So, he didn't go for it. Josh was proud of Drake though. For once, Drake had made a mature decision about his career. However, if he did go to see Alan Crimm, well, those thoughts might disappear, but Josh hoped they'd stay with Drake. He could at least write about his experiences in his music and maybe help a few kids who were going through what he had.

The thing Josh was most concerned about was not seeing Drake anymore. Drake would have Christine, but Josh wouldn't have Drake. Drake was the only real best friend Josh had ever had. That was hard to let go. Josh knew that he needed to go though. If he didn't, he might miss out on something great. He didn't want that. Besides, he could always go home.

"What's the matter?" Drake asked.

"Nothing," Josh replied. "We'd better get ready to go."

Drake was puzzled with Josh's attitude, but he decided to let it go. Josh could act strange sometimes.

* * *

Drake sat down in English. The bell was about to ring, and he had no idea where Christine was. Mrs. Haifer would show up soon. Then again, she might overlook it because Christine was never late to class. That was Drake's department. The bell rang and Christine finally slipped through the door. Fortunately for her, Mrs. Haifer hadn't shown up yet. 

"Hey, where were you?" Drake asked her as she sat down.

"Nowhere," she replied. She didn't even look at him.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm _fine_," she responded.

_Oh, no,_ Drake thought. _Not this again.

* * *

_

Drake found Christine eating lunch alone that afternoon.

"Hey," Drake said.

"Hi," she replied quietly.

"Please don't tell me you're fine. I know something's wrong. And don't tell me to leave you alone either because if it were me, you'd be doing the same thing."

"I know," Christine responded. She looked off to the side. "I guess you'd find out sooner or later. David broke up with me this morning."

"When?"

"Right before class?"

"How?"

"A text message."

"Oh," Drake replied. He blushed a bit at the thought of how he almost broke up with Tori with a text message. Wait a second. David broke up with her. Drake could...no, he had to be here for her now. Drake was upset, though. He had backed away and not said a word to Christine because of David, and he dumped her with a text message? "Jerk."

"He told me he felt like he didn't know me and that things were moving too slow."

"You were in a long distance relationship even if you were in the same state."

"I know."

"I don't think he really did know you that well either, Christine."

"I guess not. He got me a Clay Aiken cd for Christmas."

"Maybe he got confused after a conversation with Josh," Drake joked. Christine smiled, and Drake was glad to see it. "Look, if he broke up with you over a text message, then he isn't right for you anyway. At least you found that out now. You don't deserve that. Nobody does."

"I guess so. He'd been growing distant the past fewweeks. Maybe I'm better off without him.I don't think I'll be doing any dating for a while though. I have to focus on finishing the school year and my classes for my first semester at college."

"Oh, yeah," Drake replied. He sighed. This wasn't going to work in his favor, was it?

Mindy walked by on her way to the table where Josh was sitting.

"What's the matter?" Mindy asked.

"David broke up with me," Christine replied.

"Oh, that's awful," Mindy said, taking a seat next to Christine. "When? How?"

"This morning. With a text message."

"Gee, that sounds like the ideal way to end a relationship," Mindy said, shooting Drake a look that said "See?"

"Right," Drake replied, shooting Mindy a look as well.

"I should go," Christine said. "Mrs. Haifer wanted to talk to me about being late today."

"I wouldn't worry about that," Mindy said. "She likes you. She likes everybody, actually. It's just Drake that she hates."

"Thanks for reminding everyone," Drake responded.

"No problem," Mindy said.

"See you two later," Christine said, relieved to get out of that conversation. She'd rather hear what Mrs. Haifer had to say than those two snapping at each other.

Drake watched her walk away and sighed.

"Something wrong, Drake?" asked Mindy.

"Huh? No, of course not," Drake replied.

"You know, David wasn't the only one acting distant in that relationship," Mindy replied. "Sometimes it was like Christine's mind was somewhere else."

Drake gave Mindy a puzzled look. She shrugged and headed over to where Josh was sitting. What had she meant by that?

* * *

Drake arrived home to find his mom baking cookies. She never baked. If anyone baked, it was Josh. Something wasn't right. 

"Drake," Audrey said, glancing up from her cook book.

"Hi mom," Drake said. "You don't have work?"

"No, not today," she replied.

"What's going on?"

Audrey sighed as Walter walked into the kitchen.

"What's the matter?" Walter asked.

"Ford called me and said he'd be able to come next month," Audrey said.

"April? That's nearly four months after we told him we'd talk to him," Drake responded, angry. "Does he really think he can be 'Dad' again? God, why did I ever agree to talking to him again." Drake left the kitchen in a huff.

"Drake!" Audrey called after her son.

"Don't," Walter said. "I'll go talk to him."

Walter left the kitchen to find Drake watching television. Actually, Walter could tell Drake wasn't really watching it. Drake's expression was emotionless and blank, plus the show that he was watching was the Teletubbies.

"Drake," Walter said, sitting down on the couch.

"What?" Drake asked.

"Um, I know Ford coming back into your life is probably very difficult, especially after the past few years, but I really think you need to talk to him."

"I did," Drake replied. "He was everything I despise."

"Did you even let him talk much?"

"Look, I've got a new life and so does he. I just want to end it there." Drake got up and began to walk toward the stairs. Walter watched him and sighed.

"Don't push him away because of Josh and me," Walter said. Drake slowly turned back around.

"It's not that, it's just, things are fine now, and I really..." Drake felt a tear slide down his cheek. Great, he was crying.

"Drake," Walter said, "Josh and I care about you. We love you, but I don't want you to push out your real dad without giving him a chance. I know he ran away from you guys, but I think he wants to explain himself." Walter paused. "Someday, he's going to have helped you out even if you don't think he ever will, and he's going to need you in return. You never know what will happen."

"I don't know if he can do anything for me. I know it didn't seem like it at first, but when you and Josh moved in, I guess I was happy. Mom was happy. I had a dad again. A dad that I hoped like hell wasn't going to walk out on us, but after a while, I found out that you weren't like Ford at all."

Walter felt his own eyes grow teary.

"Do you know how happy I was the first time you called me Dad and meant it?" Walter asked.

"You are my dad," Drake said. More tears fell. Drake wanted to hide them. It was partially because of Walter and Josh that he hadn't been completely willing to listen to Ford. He wanted to keep what he had because it was good.

Drake looked at Walter. Then he did something he'd only ever done to get his mom off of their back, he hugged Walter, and this time, he meant it.

Walter was a bit surprised at first. Drake was a senior in high school, and showing this kind of affection was odd for him, but Walter accepted it wholeheartedly. After all, he hadn't known Drake when he was a little boy to give him these kinds of hugs.

"Please, Drake, listen to what he has to say at least."

"Okay," Drake replied. "I will."

* * *

A/N: So, a number of things happened in this chapter. Some things in this chapter that Walter said will be relevent at the end, and they will carry on to part three. For now, part two only has two chapters to go.


	12. Chapter 12: What I Want You to Be

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this.

A/N: Some questions are answered. This is the longest chapter, and with good reason. A lot of talking. Alison, I know you were hoping for a longer conversation between Ford and Drake...well, this is what I was waiting to come up with...

_Chapter 12: What I Want You to Be_

* * *

Drake slid off of his bed after his mom called him. Ford was there. He thought about what was about to happen. Maybe he really hadn't given Ford enough time to explain why he left. Drake sighed. He began to climb down the stairs. He met Megan at the bottom. She looked a little nervous. 

"Hey," Drake said, "it'll be okay."

"I hope so," Megan replied.

Brother and sister walked toward the kitchen together. Audrey and Josh, sitting on the sofa, glanced at them as they walked inside. Hopefully everything would turn out for the better.

"I hope this goes okay," Josh said.

"I do too," Audrey replied. "Josh, what exactly did you say to Ford?"

"Not much," Josh replied. Drake and Megan didn't know, but Josh had had a quick conversation with Ford. About what, not even Audrey knew.

* * *

Drake and Megan sat next to each other in the kitchen. Drake had no idea how he would keep from losing his temper this time. 

"Drake," Ford began, "I know our last conversation didn't go very well. There were some things I wanted to tell you that I didn't get the chance to say, and I owe a rather large explanation to Megan. I guess I'm going to start from the beginning."

"You mean when you left us?" Drake interjected.

"Do you even remember why your mother and I divorced?" Ford asked.

"Because...uh..."

"I didn't think so."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Drake responded.

"You have no idea what you're talking about. You barely remember what happened. You were angry; you wanted to forget, and you did."

Drake was quiet. Why did he have to be right? Well, whether or not Drake wanted to recall why his parents divorced in the first place didn't change the fact that Ford had run away from them. Drake decided to try and keep quiet and listen like he promised Walter he would. Besides, if he didn't, he might really snap.

"Now," Ford continued, "when the relationship between your mother and I first started to fall apart, we stayed together for you two. However, the arguments grew worse. Part of the problem was, I didn't love your mother anymore, but I think she still loved me."

Drake took that in for a moment. Maybe that was why he had been able to move on quickly and Audrey had taken a while longer to find someone else.

"I didn't think we'd end up divorced," Ford went on. "But eventually, your mother became increasingly upset because I wasn't being romantic. She accused me of having an affair, which I didn't, but all the same, she realized I didn't love her the way I used to love her. It was difficult to calm her down."

"I don't understand something," Megan said.

Ford looked a little startled. He hadn't heard Megan's voice in years.

"What?" Ford asked gently.

"How could you not love Mom anymore? After over eleven years?" she asked.

"I know," Ford replied. "We rushed quickly into marriage, and you would wonder why I didn't realize I wasn't in love anymore sooner. I think I started denying that the love was fading a while before that. I missed the rush of when we were young. I wanted to love your mom, I really did, but it just wasn't there anymore. Audrey soon figured that out and we began to argue. You two were never around, but there were sometimes when the arguments would get out of control, and someone would run into another room in tears. I wished I could be in love again, but it wasn't there. As much as I wanted it to be there, for you kids, for your mom and me, it was gone. When your mom started the accusations of me having an affair, we realized that even if we tried to have a relationship to raise you kids, it wouldn't happen without trust either. Ultimately, we decided to get a divorce."

"That would explain why you two divorced," Drake said. "But it still doesn't explain why you ran away and why you stopped writing to me."

"True, I did do those things. Before I explain, I have something to show you, Drake." Ford picked up his bag and pulled out a box. It was a shoebox decorated for Father's Day that Megan had made in preschool before the divorce. Drake was shocked to see it again. Ford slid the box over to Drake. Drake stared at it, wondering what could possibly be inside of it. "Well, go ahead and open it," Ford said. "It's not going to bite."

Drake slowly pulled the lid off of the box and glanced inside at the contents. He was surprised at what he found. He reached his hand in and pulled out an envelope, addressed to Ford in New York. Drake opened the envelope and found the letter he'd written seven years ago. He slowly began to look through the rest of the box. It was full of letters and emails that Drake had written to Ford since he ran away to New York. Drake barely noticed the tear slipping down his cheek. He quickly brushed it away before Megan could see. Why had Ford kept all these? Did they really matter to him?

"Every one you ever sent is in there, Drake," Ford said.

"Why did you keep them?" Drake asked.

"Now it's time for me to explain why I left," Ford said. "Maybe that will give you your answer."

Drake put the letters back in the box and slipped the lid back on the top.

"When your mother and I first divorced, I was going to leave, you all knew that. However, I was going to go to an apartment closer to where you lived. That way I could still see the two of you. After a time I thought long and hard about what I was going to do. I thought about what I wanted to leave the two of you with when I left the house. I realized that what I was wasn't the best for you to know. I didn't want you to see that a family should exist without love and trust between everyone. I was scared that the two of you would grow up and not think about love when it came to a relationship."

Drake turned red. Part of him wanted to shout at Ford that because of that, he'd become that way. But then, part of him wanted to keep listening. Thankfully, those days were over for him. He did miss them every once in a while, but for the most part, he was happy with his choice. Maybe he hadn't cared for Melissa as much as he should have, but it was nice to be committed to one person. Perhaps someday he'd have that again, and it would be true.

"I left because I was afraid the two of you would become like me. That you'd grow up and love would not be a priority in your family. It should always be number one. I didn't want you to do make that mistake. That's why I left. I figured it would be better if you just had a mom who loved you without a man who didn't love her in your lives as well. I stopped writing because of that reason as well. I wanted to know you, Drake, but I didn't want you to know me. That's why I kept the letters, but that's also why I didn't respond to them anymore. I was scared. I was a coward. I wish I hadn't been now, but it's what happened. I've always made rash decisions. They do often hurt people, and I want it to stop. Now, Megan, the reason I didn't communicate with you was because I was worried about what your mother would think. Granted, I should have written to you. You're my daughter. However, I was worried about everything I'd already done and didn't want to cause anymore damage. I made the wrong decision. I've always made mistakes. I want to make up for them. You shocked me when you showed up last year, Drake. I realized then that I had to fix things between the three of us. I hope you two can forgive me."

Megan looked up at Drake. She was looking for an answer, what she found when she looked in Drake's eyes shocked her. There were tears. Drake was crying.

"I do forgive you," Drake said.

"I do too," Megan agreed.

"I just hate the fact that you were never around," Drake said. "I went through middle school and the first year of high school without a dad. It was hard. Megan went through most of elementary school without one. It's not easy at all. It hurt. But, I know it takes a lot to own up to mistakes. I know I've made a few. All you can do is try to fix them."

"Thank you for understanding, Drake," Ford said. "I don't expect you to love me either. I just want you to understand me. And, finally," Ford said. "Bobby. He still doesn't know about either of you. As soon as he's old enough to understand, I'll tell him, but right now, he's only six, and I'm afraid he wouldn't understand this at all."

"I guess so," Drake replied.

"Um, I'd like to be alone," Megan said.

"Fine," Ford nodded. He was exhausted from the explanation he'd given, but there was still something he needed to talk to Drake about. He waited until Megan had gone up the stairs. Apparently, Drake had been waiting as well.

"Listen," Drake said. "I know after all you've said, you still did care, but after not speaking to you for years, I just can't call you 'Dad' anymore. It's not fair to me, and it's not fair to Walter."

"I understand," Ford said. He expected that. Drake accepted Walter as his dad now. "I wanted to talk to you about something else."

"What?" Drake asked.

"Your brother Josh told me about a problem you've been having with Christine."

Drake turned red. Why was Josh talking to Ford in the first place?

"Now, before you get upset, don't worry about it. Listen. I know you don't want to tell her you care about her because you're afraid you'll hurt her, and you don't want to be like me. Like I said, I don't want you to be like me either, which is why you have to tell her."

"What?" Drake asked.

"I know I said I didn't love your mom anymore, but after a while of being alone, I realized I did still love her. I didn't want Megan to know that and I don't want your mom to know that. It just isn't explainable. Things just weren't as perfect in our marriage as I expected them to be, and I wasn't expecting that. I didn't try to bring back the old spark we used to have."

"Why didn't you try and talk to Mom again? You knew you loved her. You even told us you thought she still loved you."

"Yeah. I did, but I broke her heart, and I heart you and Megan. I couldn't go back after that. After I was in New York, I began to regret everything that had happened. Please don't make that mistake. If there's anyway you shouldn't be like me, that's it. Go find her and tell her that you care."

"But what if..."

"What if she doesn't care about you? What if she does? Don't give up on something when you haven't even tried hard enough for it. After a while, I realized that I could never have your mom back. I do regret what's happened, but I don't regret marrying again. I know what to do this time, but I wish I didn't have to find out the way I did. I don't want you to find out you lost the woman you love and still love sometime in your future. Go tell her."

"It's just not that easy," Drake replied. "She doesn't even want to date right now. She wants to focus on school."

"Drake, everyone needs love. You know that."

Drake didn't understand this. Ford was making sense. Everything he'd said ended up being right. Well, Drake was never going to look at Ford as a father figure ever again, but maybe he was right about Christine. Drake thought about how miserable he was when she was dating David. Then he thought about how out of control his emotions got when he found her diary. Drake sighed. How could he show her he cared about her more than David had? How could he show her that his feelings were more than friendship? Maybe by showing that he paid attention to her and that he knew what she liked and didn't like? He thought about the conversations they'd had before and tried to search for something that would help him out. Finally he stood up and looked at Ford. Walter had been right about Ford helping him out someday. Would Ford ever need him, though? He had Bobby and his new wife to help him when he needed it.

"I have to go take care of something," Drake said.

"Christine?" Ford asked.

Drake nodded. He checked to make sure he had his wallet and headed out the door.

Ford sighed. He'd always expected Drake would eventually end up with Christine. Drake had written to him that she'd moved away. He hadn't been responding then. It was the last letter Drake sent him. Ford didn't blame him. Now, he didn't want Drake to end up without someone he cared about.

"I don't want you to end up like me," Ford whispered. "What I want you to be is someone who doesn't let go of love, and does everything they can to hold onto it." Ford didn't know why he was still talking to Drake. After all, he had already left. But, it was the truth. Ford put Megan's shoebox back in his bag and pulled out two envelopes, one with Drake's name and one with Megan's name. He left them on the table. It was contact information. If they wanted it, they could have it when they were ready.

* * *

A/N: So...you might still hate Ford and think Drake's a fool for forgiving him, but I figured in the situation, Drake would. Also, he doesn't see him as his father either. I hope you can see where Drake stands on the issue. I've got one chapter left. I really don't have much of part three done. It may be a while before I even begin to post that, but it should be worth the wait. Either way, one chapter left of part two.


	13. Chapter 13: The Right Colored Rose

Disclaimer: All Drake & Josh characters copyright their proper owners. I just wrote this. And "You're Beautiful" is by James Blunt. "Ever the Same" is by Rob Thomas. _Where the Heart Is_ is written by Billie Letts, and I used an excerpt from pages 355 and 356 of a Warner Books paperback copy from 2000.

A/N: Like the last part, not everything will be cleared up in this part. However, since there's only one part left after this, everything will be cleared up in part three. I am going to clear something up from part one in this chapter. Remember Christine describing a guy to Drake that she liked? You'll find out who it is. I'm going back and forth between Christine and Drake in the beginning of this chapter. I hope it doesn't confuse you because I've also got song lyrics and the novel excerpt weaving in and out as well. If you're confused, just ask me. I'll try to clear it up for you.

_Chapter Thirteen: The Right Colored Rose_

* * *

Christine sat on the couch in her living room. Her mom was out for the day, Mindy had a large report to do, Michelle had academic team, and Drake was giving Ford one last chance. There was no way any of them would be able to keep her company that day. As bored as she was, she was glad they were all working, and she was proud of Drake for giving Ford that one last chance. She decided to take the day to read _Where the Heart Is_ again. Although, it brought back emotions that she had pushed away for a long time.

* * *

Drake drove slowly to Christine's house. Why did Josh talk to Ford in the first place? What had compelled him to do it? Drake sighed. It was all because Josh loved him. He didn't want to see him get hurt. Ford obviously didn't want to either, but he made a lot of mistakes. Drake didn't know what he was going to do about Ford anymore. He just wasn't Dad. Walter was Dad. Drake couldn't see things any other way. Maybe he and Ford could be friends on some level. He must have cared if he'd kept all the letters Drake had written to him. 

Drake stopped those thoughts. Ford wasn't what he was dealing with now. Christine was.

* * *

Christine sighed as she turned the page of her book. She was nearing the end. She had just gotten to the part where Novalee finally tells Forney she loves him. Novalee thought she'd be holding Forney back, and she couldn't hurt him if they weren't together. The story was all too familiar to her life. You just didn't want to risk hurting a friend, especially when they wanted so much more. You'd hurt them because you could never be what they wanted in a relationship.

* * *

_You're beautiful  
You're beautiful  
You're beautiful, it's true  
There must be an angel  
With a smile on her face  
When she thought that I should be with you_

_But it's time to face the truth  
I will never be with you_

Drake sighed at the song played on the radio. Was that really it? Would he never get to have her?

* * *

_"Novalee could feel her heart quicken. Then, squeezed between convulsions of air, the words exploded from her lips._

_'I lied Forney.'_

_Seconds turned into lifetimes while Novalee strained to hear some sound . . . a whisper of a voice, an embrace of breath._

_'Oh, don't let it be too late, Forney. Please don't let it be too late.' She prayed he was still on the line, prayed they were still connected._

_'I lied to you . . . and I'm sorry.'_

_Then she heard him draw a deep ragged breath."_

Christine sighed. Life wasn't like the one Novalee led. It was too difficult to just tell someone you loved them. Well, it had been for Novalee, but she eventually did something. Not everyone could just do that, or could they? Could _she_ look at someone she cared about for so long and tell them how she felt, when she hadn't in the first place because she knew they wanted better than her?

* * *

_We were drawn from the weeds  
We were brave like soldiers  
Falling down under the pale moonlight  
You were holding to me  
Like a someone broken  
And I couldn't tell you but I'm telling you now_

_Just let me hold you while you're falling apart  
Just let me hold you and we'll both fall down_

_Fall on me  
Tell me everything you want me to be  
Forever with you forever in me  
Ever the same_

The next song playing was the Rob Thomas song "Ever the Same." At least it wasn't depressing Drake as much. Actually, it did make him think of Christine. He had wanted to help her last year when she first started to deal with her parents' divorce. He had let her lean on him. Maybe something could come of all that.

* * *

_"'I thought you wanted something else--a different life. I thought you wanted to go back to Maine . . . go back to school . . . become a teacher. And I was afraid if I tried to keep you here with me . . .'_

_'Novalee . . .'_

_'So when you asked me if I loved you, I said . . .'_

_'You said, 'No. Not in the way you need to be loved. Not in that way.''_

_'But it wasn't true, Forney. I do love you.'_

_'Then . . .'_

_'I lied because I thought you deserved something better.'_

_'Something better than you?' His voice was husky and thick. 'Novalee, there isn't anything better than you.'"_

Christine lay the book down in her lap. She wondered if maybe it was possible for things to work out the way they did for Novalee. She got her love when she finally decided to stop running from it because she didn't think she was worth it to Forney. However, she soon learned she was what he wanted.

* * *

_We would stand in the wind  
We were free like water  
Flowing down  
Under the warmth of the sun  
Now it's cold and we're scared  
And we've both been shaken  
Look at us  
Man, this doesn't need to be the end_

_Just let me hold you while you're falling apart  
Just let me hold you and we'll both fall down_

_Fall on me tell me everything you want me to be  
Forever with you  
Forever in me  
Ever the same  
Call on me  
I'll be there for you and you'll be there for me  
Forever it's you  
Forever in me  
Ever the same_

Drake sat listening. He thought about the dream he'd had back in the fall. Why had he said he loved her when he begged her to come back? Did he really? They were eighteen. Was that old enough?

_You may need me there  
To carry all your weight  
But you're no burden I assure  
You tide me over  
With a warmth I'll not forget  
But I can only give you love_

_Fall on me  
Tell me everything you want me to be  
Forever with you  
Forever in me  
Ever the same_

_Call on me  
I'll be there for you  
And you'll be there for me  
Forever it's you  
Forever in me  
Ever the same_

_Forever with you  
Forever in me  
Ever the same_

The song ended. Drake glanced into the passenger seat where a single red rose lay. Yes, that was how he felt about her.

* * *

Christine got up off the couch and began to head toward the stairs to put her book upstairs. She heard the doorbell ring. It was odd because no one was supposed to be around at all that day. She set her book on the desk and headed toward the door to open it. When she found Drake standing there, she was surprised. He was supposed to have been with Ford all day. Had things not gone well? Christine hadn't been expecting much after Drake's last encounter with him, but she had hoped things would go better this time. 

"What's the matter?" she asked. "Did something happen with Ford?"

"Yes," Drake replied.

"He's still not..."

"No," Drake responded. "That's not it at all. I am here because of him but not because of him upsetting me. I guess I understand now why he did some of the things he did. I wouldn't be here now if it weren't for him, I guess."

"Then, why are you here?" Christine questioned

"I really need to talk to you," Drake said.

"You want to come in then?" Christine offered.

"Sure." Drake sat on the couch. This would be difficult. "Before I tell you anything, I want to give you something." Drake handed her the rose he had bought before driving to her house. Christine stared at it for a moment. A look of surprise filled her face.

"Drake, I told you that this meant..."

"I know."

"Then..."

"I know I've been acting very strange lately. I have to be honest now. I've been jealous of David, and that's not right. I guess I should have figured it was someone like him when I teased you and made you describe who you liked to me last year. By now I know it was him."

"Drake, that wasn't David," Christine said, a bit embarrassed.

"Oh, well, which honor student was it?"

"I said he wasn't an honor student."

"You said he was smart."

"Yes. I also said he respected me. And he was cute." She glanced up at him. He looked puzzled. "It was you."

"Me?"

"Yes."

Drake nearly hit the floor.

"Then..." he sighed, "I probably could have said something last year. I should have. I'm sorry. I care about you a lot. More than I thought I did."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"I was afraid of hurting you. I didn't want to be like Ford. He told me today he didn't want me to be like him anyway," Drake said. "He didn't want me to make the mistake of giving up something that could be so wonderful."

"Drake," Christine said. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea. It would ruin everything we have."

"Will it?"

"I don't know. Maybe."

"I don't want to lose you as a friend, but I care about you a lot. I already made the mistake of not telling you once. I don't want to do that again."

"Drake...I...we..."

"I don't want to hurt you. I also don't want to be Ford. He always hid his emotion and affection, and even he hates where that's gotten him now. I care about you, so much"

"I feel the same way about you," she replied.

"Then let's not let this go," Drake said. "I know this is scary and different, and we might come out of this broken hearted, but isn't it worth it to at least try? I love you. I want us to be together. I want to try. If we don't try, we might regret it. I don't want to regret it."

"I don't either," Christine replied.

"Then let's try, please. Hey, I promised you we'd always be together. I won't let anyone or anything break that promise. Besides, I also promised I'd take you to prom if neither of us had a date, and well, we don't."

Christine was nervous. Her best friend had just told her he loved her. That was pretty big. If she hurt him, she would never forgive herself. Drake meant more to her than any other guy ever had. She stared at the rose he'd given her. He'd remembered. He knew her better than anyone. She felt a tear slide down her cheek. She wanted Drake. She wanted someone she could laugh at Jon Heder with. She wanted someone who knew what music she liked to listen to and someone who let her know she was never alone. That was Drake. It always had been Drake. She knew what she had to tell him. She'd learned something from Novalee. You couldn't let these things go. Christine and Novalee had a chance to make things right. They should take the opportunity. Not everyone was as lucky.

"I love you too, Drake," Christine replied.

Drake smiled. He felt a burst of happiness inside him. It seemed to replace the jealousy he used to have for David. Things were fine now. Drake wasn't going to let Christine go easily. He didn't know it, but at that moment, Christine made the same vow toward Drake.

Drake couldn't stand it any longer. He had to do what he'd wanted to do for a long time. He bent down and kissed her. He hadn't since they were eleven. Seven years later, it meant everything. When Christine felt Drake's lips touch hers, she remembered the time when he promised her they would always be together. The kiss felt right then, but it felt even more right now. Their kiss grew more passionate as Drake brought his arms around her and held her close to him. He felt her cling to him just as tight. This was what he'd always wanted. Neither of them wanted to break that kiss, but they knew they had to do it eventually. Finally, they did. Drake continued to hold Christine. If they could be that way forever, life would be perfect.

"Can I ask you a question?" Drake asked.

"Sure," Christine replied.

"Why didn't you say anything about wanting to be with me?"

"I guess I thought with all the girls you dated you were only interested in the really pretty ones. The ones who were better than me."

"I thought you deserved better than me," Drake responded.

"I guess we had the same thoughts then. I have to admit, there probably is a better girl than me out there for you. You just haven't..."

"Something better than you? Christine, there isn't anything better than you."

* * *

A/N: Maybe a bit corny way to end this part. I liked it though. I love that book. And do you see what Mindy meant when she said Christine's mind seemed like it wassomewhere else? The last part will be up in a few weeks...actually, we'll have to see. I have some finals coming up soon for classes and papers to write for them besides. We'll see. Shouldn't be more than a few weeks. I need to get moving on it. The last part will tie up everything. I'll go more into Megan and Walter's feelings, and Drake's going to have to deal with Ford yet again. I'm also bringing back another character from part one and developing him/her more. Until then, I hope you enjoyed part two.


End file.
